A Fresh Start
by StoryTimez
Summary: Spencer Reid is 16. Unable to deal with his mother's mental illness, bullies, and the abandonment from his father, he tries to kill himself. After he is released from the hospital, he is sent to live with his father. High School AU/AH. Most characters included. Eventual Moreid. Please read & review!
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hello all, this is my second story and in a separate category from my first. Criminal Minds is one of my favorite shows and I have plenty of ideas for stories about the characters (mainly Spencer and Derek).

WARNING: This story deals with suicide attempt(s?), thoughts about it, neglect, depression, mentions of bullying, a homosexual relationship, friendship, and general teen angst. You've been warned.

"Future chapters will be beta'ed by my beta, TheShulesLovinPsycho (Chapters 2-7 have already been sent I've already written chapter 8). But I'm just very excited to publish this story and see what y'all think, so I'm going to go ahead and post it! Please review!

Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize. I hope you like this story and I'd greatly appreciate a review!

Chapter One: Birthdays Aren't Always Happy

Spencer Reid woke with a start, shooting straight up in bed. It was a Monday morning, but much too early to wake for school yet. He could hear objects being thrown and moved around, along with his mother's panicked voice. In anyone else's home, it would be a cause for alarm. _'Someone must be breaking into my house_' being the most common thought, but Spencer knew the reason and it just made him sad.

With a heavy sigh, the now sixteen year old pushed his covers away and went to his closet.

_CRASH!_

Spencer hurried the process of putting on his clothes at the sound of glass breaking. Then, running a hand through his wavy brown locks in attempt to untangle it, he walked out of his room quietly.

He looked around the corner of the hallway his room was located in. The living room was chaos, and no doubt the kitchen was as well. He'd dealt with this many times before, he knew how to handle her, just not in a timely manner. It wasn't even really handling the situation, it was waiting for it to end without either of them getting hurt.

Diana Reid spotted him watching her, _"YOU'RE SPYING ON ME, SPENCER!"_, she screamed angrily at her only son.

_"You work with the government, don't you?"_ She was making her way towards him in fury. Spencer calmed himself down as she put her face in his, "_DON'T YOU?"_

Spencer winced at the shrill voice, a headache forming in his powerful mind. "No, mom, I'm sixteen. I promise you I don't work for the government."

She shook her head in disgust and pushed Spencer aside, heading for his room. "That's just what _they_ would say!"

Spencer followed her, she was about to open the door to his room and destroy his most beloved possessions, again. "Mom! Please, let's just go back out front. You need to take your medicine!"

She looked at him, hand resting on the doorknob, "I will _never_ take those pills, Spencer. I know you're hiding microphones in here!" Determination was present in her voice, and she pushed open the door.

Spencer rushed in after her, not looking forward to having to put all of his books back on the bookshelf after she'd be done. He couldn't do anything to stop her; touching her would be a threat, and begging did nothing but make her angrier.

He begged anyways, hoping, even though he knew better, that maybe she'd stop. _It'll never stop_, he thought with exhaustion.

Blinking away a few tears, he watched as his mother tore apart his copy of 'The Canterbury Tales' by Chaucer. It had been a birthday gift from her, the day his dad left. He turned nine that day, and he hadn't seen or heard from his father since.

He continued to watch Diana, but tuned out the noisy rage that seemed to flow out of her. She'd ran past him, leaving destruction in her path.

She left his room, and he sat on his bed, too tired to go after her. He looked around his room, clothes and books were strewn across the floor, ripped pages much like the kind he'd taped back together again before. The clock showed that he should have been on his way to school by now, but he didn't care.

Tears started trickling down, quickly turning into a steady downpour. His head ached so badly, he was just so _tired._ He pushed away the tears, contemplating for the millionth time if he should do what he knew was selfish of him.

He didn't think he could handle this anymore, his mother rarely recognizing him. Blaming him for things that never happened, like the 'government' spying on them. He thought about the torture he was put through at school, the goal post incident and the many others that haunted him at night. His school only let him skip two years, they thought he needed social interaction. He definitely had that, if you considered bullying a part of being a 'social butterfly', as they had put it.

He thought about waiting to see if his father would call him, wish him a "Happy Birthday!" Or at least _pretend _to give a damn and see how his ex-wife and son were doing. He knew that call would never come, and with that his mind was made up. He retrieved a notebook from the floor, and a pen from his desk. He began to write a letter to his mother.

As her frenzy continued in the living room of his Las Vegas home, he made his way to her bathroom. Closing the door, he reached an unsteady hand in the cabinet and pulled out his mom's hair-care basket. Finding what he was looking for, he took out the scissors and replaced the basket.

He went back and forth in his mind, fear and guilt pulling at him. He tried to turn off his brain, to stop the flow of statistics about the affects of a family member's suicide. About the chances of surviving and getting admitted into a psych-ward. About how _he'd _be just another statistic.

He put the blade in his non-dominate hand and put pressure on it. He gasped in pain as he dragged it down his wrist, agonizingly slow. He'd cut himself before, but it was nothing like this. They were barely scratches. Blood pooled out, as he shakily switched hands and started on his other wrist.

He didn't finish his right arm, he dropped the scissors and sunk to the floor, sobbing. He held his wrist tight, _God, this hurts!_ Eyes screwed shut, he attempted to let the darkness take over him.

He hadn't noticed that the screaming and crashing had died down long before he'd finished his left wrist. He didn't know that his mother had come to, and feeling guilty, had went to his room wanting to apologize.  
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Diana looked at what she'd done to her precious son's room. Shame washed over her and she scanned the room, looking to see where he could be hiding. _Hiding from his own mother.._ she thought warily.

Her roaming eyes stopped on his bed, the only part that seemed to have been cleaned up. One stray paper laid on the bedspread. She picked it up, figuring it was one of his papers for school, she was going to clean everything up for him.

When she read what was written on it, she began to cry. She shook her head desperately and called out for Spencer.

"Spencer! Please, where are you honey?" She ran to her bedroom, the only place she hadn't looked in yet. The door to her bathroom was closed, but light flooded out from underneath the door.

She slammed it open, there was so much blood. She picked him up, feeling for a pulse. It was barely there, but that was enough hope for her. She placed him back down, whispering apologies before racing for the phone.

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His eyes flickered open and closed, catching white walls, a figure of a man, and a too-bright light. He could hear the beeping of a monitor. _I'm in the hospital._ Spencer thought to himself, slightly confused before the memory of what he'd done came back. He instantly felt terrible, _How could I have done this to my own mom?_

"He whimpered, and then remembered that he wasn't alone in the room. He still didn't open his eyes, he felt drowsy and couldn't bare the thought of explaining why he'd done what he did.

"Spencer?" A man's voice intruded his thoughts. It was a harsh tone, one he knew, but couldn't quite place.

"Spencer, are you awake?" The man spoke again, and Reid realized who it was.

His father.

Slowly, he opened his eyes, and they landed on his dad. _He's aged a lot._ was all Spencer could think as he laid under the scrutiny of his father's gaze. Even now he didn't seem to care.

Spencer found his voice, "What are you doing here?"

"William stared at him, "For a genius, you're an idiot." He paused, attempting to make his voice more gentle, "Why do you think I'm here? You tried to kill yourself, Spencer!"

"Reid looked down, noticing the bandages on his wrists. "Where's mom?" The guilt was present in his voice.

The elder Reid sighed, "She's talking to a doctor about the mental health facility associated with the hospital."

Spencer's eyes widened, "No! Please don't make me stay here, I regret what I did! I'm not going to do it again, I promise.. Just tell them to let me go home..._please..." _He was crying now, his heartbeat quickening, he couldn't stay here.

William shook his head slightly, "She's not asking about it for _you._

Spencer's face fell as it dawned on him, it was his fault his mom was checking herself into, what she called during her episodes, a prison. And where would he end up?

"I.. Can I see her?" He looked up at his father, pleading with him.

"I'm going to call your doctor in. It'll be up to her." His father replied, in his business tone. "But you're not going home with her, there's no way they'll let her live on her own, let alone with you."

Spencer's eyebrows furrowed as his dad pressed the call button on the side of his bed. "Then where will I go?"

His annoyed posture told Spencer that wherever he was going, it probably wasn't his dad's idea.

"You're coming to live in Virginia, with me."


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thank you for reading the first chapter and coming back for more! Also for favs/follows and reviews, I appreciate them more than you would believe.

I've decided to edit this story on my own because I want to update this once a week and our (my beta and I) schedules don't match up.

If you're reading my other story, I'm still updating it but it's being beta'ed by the awesome TheShulesLovinPsycho ! I'm currently writing chapter 8 for the Psych story.

Please Reid (haha, I'm _so_ original) and review! I hope you enjoy chapter two!

/

Chapter Two: A House Doesn't Always Feel Like A Home

His father was checking him out of the hospital he'd been forced to stay in to make sure he was 'stable enough' to leave. Being there for five days seemed to be more than enough time, well that's what he thought at least.

His mother had been allowed to visit him once before she was placed into the facility. Talking with her made him feel queasy with guilt, but she told him that this was for the best.

He'd promised he'd write to her every day so she wouldn't be alone, and she promised to take her medications and _try_ to get along with the staff. That part made him smile, but it faded when he realized they had to say goodbye.

"I love you, mom. I'm so sorry." Spencer hugged her tightly, and she hugged back.

"It's not your fault, Honey. I love you and I can't wait to get your letters." She said it with such conviction that he almost believed her, tears rolled down both of their faces as she pulled away and kissed him on the forehead.

"Goodbye, Spencer." She smiled at him as she walked off with her new doctor.

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Spencer was brought back to the present when his father told him they were leaving. He had one large suitcase with him, the rest of his things would be shipped to Quantico before the weekend was over.

The drive to the airport was silent, save for the music playing on the radio.

"Did you know there are only two-thousand, four hundred and nineteen miles between Nevada and Virginia?" William looked towards him bemusedly but didn't respond.

"The total time difference between the two is one day and eleven hours, but our flight will only take four hours and fifty-seven minutes!" Spencer continued rambling on about their flight, and other plane facts the rest of the way to the airport. Spouting off facts was something he did when he was anxious, it was like he couldn't turn himself off even though he knew it probably drove the elder Reid insane.

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Spencer watched out the window with little interest, they were nearing landing and there wasn't much to see.

His time on the plane consisted of knee-bouncing, reading, reciting sixteenth-century literature in his mind and thinking about how strange it will be to live with a man he barely knew.

His father had paid little attention to him, figuring if he pretended Spencer wasn't there then his life would be the same as it had been a week ago. If he saw his son look at him, he'd return a smile but he knew the kid didn't believe there was any sincerity behind it.

The plan was just to allow Spencer to live with him, he wasn't expecting or planning to form a real relationship with his son.

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Spencer smiled awkwardly at William as they waited for their luggage to arrive.

Mr. Reid puffed air out of his mouth, not sure what to say. "So.. What grade are you in? We need to get you enrolled in the high school this weekend."

Spencer looked up, surprised that he'd spoken. "I'm a.. Uh.. Senior this year, my old school wouldn't let me skip more than two grades." Bitterness took over the tone of his voice by the time he'd finished talking.

It was William's turn to be surprised, he knew his son was very smart but never exactly _how_ smart.

"Wow. Just how smart are you?" Mr. Reid looked at him with a slight hint of curiosity.

"Well, I have an IQ of 187 and I read 20,000 words per minute, but that's just because of my eidetic memory." He always felt the need to downplay his intelligence to anyone other than his mom.

_Mom..._ he thought sadly, the guilt protruding him again.

William Reid just stared at his son, eyes widened from what he'd just heard. "That's.. Impressive." The awkwardness surrounded them, he should have known this about Spencer already.

Just then the bright red bag that belonged to the younger Reid came towards them on the conveyor belt, he practically jumped towards it just to get away from his dad.

His dad's dark blue suitcase soon followed and they were making their way to the parking garage where William left his car the previous week.

"This is it." He said, pointing his beeper at a black SUV a few feet ahead of them.

He opened the trunk and took Spencer's bag from his hands. He placed them in the trunk and motioned for Spencer to get in the passenger side.

No words, just the sounds of seat-belts clinking and seat adjustments alluded the car.

William started the car and backed out slowly, telling Spencer he could pick a radio station if he'd like.

He nodded, and began flipping stations, trying to find something decent to listen to.

Eventually he just settled on a station, not caring what was playing as long as it wasn't silence.

His father told him it would be under an hour's drive and that he'd had the basic necessities set up in his new room. "I'll let you go shopping for your room once you get settled in and things calm down a bit."

"Okay." He paused, "Thank you." William merely nodded.

"We'll get you a cellphone as well, in case of emergencies." He said, "And of course so you can call your friends back home."

"Uh.. Yeah, thanks." Spencer didn't feel like telling him that he had no friends, he didn't want to disappoint him like he did when he was little, failing at every sport William tried to teach him.

It seemed the tension was worse for Mr. Reid than Spencer, because he just kept asking questions despite his plan to not push into the kid's life.

"Do you have a girlfriend back in Vegas?" He asked hopefully.

Spencer almost laughed, "No, sir." He hadn't ever been interested in them, and even if he was- they wouldn't be interested in him.. Who would?

The quiet took over again as Spencer watched the sun set. They'd be at his new house in a matter of minutes, and he wasn't looking forward to it.

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William pulled into the long driveway and a nice two-story house came into view.

"Wow, it's big." Reid commented before opening the passenger door.

"Yeah. I remodeled it not too long ago, your room is a decent size."

He pulled out the bags and gave Spencer his, "Let's get inside, the housekeeper should have dinner ready."

He quirked an eyebrow at the mention of a housekeeper, how rich was his father?

As they approached the door, it flung open. A woman older than his father ran out, she was short and plump with a kind face. Reid guessed she had some Hispanic in her.

"Mr. Reid! So nice to see you! And this must be Spencer!" She oozed of genuine happiness, Spencer liked her already.

Mr. Reid smiled and said hello before passing her and walking into the house.

"That I am, it's nice to meet you ma'am" he smiled broadly at her, this was the first time he felt welcome coming to his dad's home.

"Call me Stella." She stated as she hugged Reid, he fought the urge to squirm away. "You look like you could use some meat on those bones, I hope you like stuffed bell peppers!"

Spencer smiled as she released him, "I'm sure they taste amazing, thank you for making dinner."

She pushed him inside playfully, "It's no problem. I'll show you your room if you'd like."

"Sure, that'd be nice." She nodded and pointed to the stairs.

Spencer looked around the massive living room that was interrupted by a staircase and continued on to become a dining room. His father was no where in sight.

"You coming?" She said, one foot planted on the first step of the mahogany stairs.

"Yeah, I was just wondering where Wil- my dad went." She noted his slip and shook her head knowingly.

"Try not to be too offended by his manners, he tends to be a busy man. He's in his office, I'm assuming. He'll come down soon." She said in a reassuring tone.

He nodded and followed her up to the second floor. They passed three doors, which Stella told him was a bathroom, guest room and an empty room. The fourth room was near the back of the house, and it was his to claim.

"I'm sure you'll like it, your dad says your items should be shipped from your Mom's house." She smiled softly at him, she had to have known what happened.

"He says they should be here this weekend...I'm guessing you know why I'm here?"

She nodded, "I do, and I'm sorry about your mother. I hope you can find happiness here."

"I.. Thank you." He wasn't quite sure what to say, but this woman, whom he'd known for a matter of five minutes, made him feel better than he had all week.

She smiled again, "Well, put your suitcase down and go eat!"

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Spencer and his dad sat at the large dining room table on either end. He had just finished his first helping of Stella's meal and was contemplating a second.

Stella had gone home after she served them, something that Spencer felt very awkward about. He'd insisted that he get his own plate but she pushed him back to the table.

Now he just sat there subtly staring at his dad, not sure what to say, if anything. Mr. Reid was reading the paper and slowly eating his meal.

Reid spoke up, "Um, I think I'll go to bed now."

William looked up from his paper, "Yes, alright. I may not be here in the morning. I leave early most days, but Stella gets in around nine. You can help yourself to anything in the kitchen."

Spence nodded, "Sounds good. Will my things be here tomorrow?" He really wanted his books.

"They should arrive around 2 pm. The moving men will carry everything up for you."

"Okay, goodnight." He wasn't comfortable saying 'I love you' and didn't think he ever would be. He climbed the stairs after his dad returned the phrase.

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Spencer opened the door to his new room for the second time, and slipped in. He assessed the room more diligently now that he was alone.

It was a really nice room. A high ceiling, a huge window looking over the backyard, a flat screen TV (not that he really saw himself using it), a king sized bed and lots of space for his things. The walls were a beautiful burgundy, something he never realized he liked.

He sat on the bed next to his suitcase, and began to think about his mom. She'd never been in a house like this, William would probably have never allowed her in- in fear that she'd tear it apart.

His chest swelled up with a mixture of guilt, depression and anger. He couldn't stop thinking about how much she hated the hospital. He knew how badly she need the care there, but he felt as though he'd let her down.

He slowed his breath, and hopped off the bed. _It's no use thinking about things you can't change._

He grasped the handle of his bag and brought it to the large walk-in closet. He quickly hung his shirts, folded his pants, and tossed his undergarments in the drawer.

He changed into his pajamas and climbed into the bed, which was more comfortable than he'd been expecting.

He laid awake for an hour, his mind wandering through the past, present and future. He missed his old room, the worn-in feel of it, the love that was once present there. He'd hoped this place would eventually feel like a home to him, but he doubted it. He shifted and rolled over many times before he finally fell asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Criminal Minds ch 3

A/N: Thank you for the reviews/follows/favorites, I love receiving them. I hope you're all enjoying the story, because I've been dying to write this.

PLEASE read &amp; review!

/

Chapter Three: Settling In (Whether You Like It Or Not)

The rising sun plastered itself across Spencer's face, much to his dismay. _I need to change the position of my bed. _He thought, shielding his eyes with his arm.

He didn't lay down for long, he couldn't fall back asleep once he'd woken up. Groggily, he pushed himself into a sitting position and rubbed his eyes.

He heard no noises from downstairs, Stella wasn't due to come in yet and he guessed his father had left already.

The thought of being alone in a place he didn't know was somewhat uncomfortable. He imagined this was how kids felt at the morning after a sleepover, awake while their friend keeps on snoring.

He wasn't sure what to do, if he looked in all the rooms that would be like invading his father's personal space.. But he was truly curious.

He placed his feet on the floor and walked towards the closet. He pulled out a long-sleeved green sweater and some jeans, along with boxers and mismatched socks. He figured taking a shower would be a good idea, he hadn't taken one since Wednesday.

He walked towards the bathroom down the hall, it had a tub the size of a jacuzzi. Spencer shook his head slightly in amazement, he would usually have to squeeze himself into his shower.

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Spencer walked down the stairs, his long hair still damp.

"Hello, Spencer! How'd you sleep?" He jumped at Stella's voice, he hadn't realized how long he'd been in the shower.

"Good morning, I slept okay, " He walked into the kitchen after her, "How about you?"

"Very good, I woke up too early though." She rubbed her temples, "would you like something to eat?"

He laughed, "I know the feeling." He looked around the kitchen before landing on the coffee machine, "Actually, I'm just going to make some coffee. Thank you though."

She laughed as she watched him pour what seemed to be a pound of sugar into his so-called coffee. "You like sweets, huh?"

He nodded, "Did you know that around 90 percent of Americans consume caffeine every single day in one form or another? And that more than half of all American adults consume more than 300 milligrams of caffeine every day? It's America's most popular drug!"

Her eyebrows rose up, surprised by the sudden burst of knowledge. "I didn't, but I'm glad I do now!"

He smiled briefly, "Sorry. I do that sometimes.. It's hard to keep it in."

She shook her head, "You sound pretty smart, I don't mind hearing a few facts everyday."

He smiled at her, and grabbed his coffee. As he sat down on the bar stool, he frowned lightly.

"Is everything okay?" She noticed the emotion on his face change so quickly that it concerned her.

"Yeah. It's just..my mom, she liked hearing them too." He bit his lip, "And now she won't get to hear them in person."

She patted his hand, "You can write to her, no?"

"I'm going to write to her every day. It just doesn't feel the same, you know?" He couldn't believe he was talking to anyone about this, but she seemed to actually care.

"It'll be okay in time. Don't you worry."

He thanked her before she left the room to go do Mr. Reid's laundry.

He finished off his coffee and decided to go back up stairs and write the letter to his mom.

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It was 1:45 pm and he heard Stella opening the door, greeting the early moving men. He placed his journal on the bed and raced down stairs, anxious to have his items from home.

"Yes, the room is upstairs." Stella was talking to the largest man of the group when she spotted Spencer.

She pointed him out to the men, "This is Spencer, he'll show you which room he's in." She smiled at the teen.

Spencer and the men engaged in hellos before they went to retrieve boxes from the truck.

After he showed them the room, leaving the door open, he joined Stella in the living room.

She was watching a talk-show with a nice short-haired blonde woman on it. He watched the TV as she and her audience danced to some up-beat song.

Stella looked up at him and winked, "Don't tell your father but I like to watch Ellen after I finish my chores for the afternoon." They both laughed and he sat on the couch.

The moving men were in and out of the house quickly, and Stella gave them the money (plus a generous tip) that William had left for them.

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Boxes were surrounding him as he stood in his room with Stella.

"Do you need some help? I've got some muscle on me." She grinned.

He laughed, "I'm sure you do, but you should go finish watching Ellen. I'll be fine." She laughed and nodded before closing his door.

He pushed the heavy boxes (full of books) into one area and started to move his bed to under the window.

The bookshelves already lined the walls, 4 in total, but room for more. One by one he pulled the books out and gently placed them on the shelves.

He looked at the tears on the most of the books and thought about all of the rampages his mother had been through. _At least I don't have to worry about my books being ruined anymore. _He almost felt bad thinking that, but it was true, it was good to not have to worry about his mom's psychotic episodes.

Soon the walls were full of literature, and a smile graced his face.

Spencer took a step back, admiring his bookshelves that he'd finally set up and filled. It took him nearly five hours to rearrange the room, and he was exhausted.

He walked to one of the shelves and pulled out some of his mother's work. He'd always kept journals of what she taught in her class.

He read it in minutes, and kept picking other books and writings. Hours passed with the occasional check-in from Stella, which he deducted was to make sure he hadn't tried to kill himself again.

The doctors at the hospital were the same way obviously, it was their job.. But it was degrading in his mind. He didn't want to be known as the kid who attempted suicide.

He pulled the sleeves up to look at his stitched up wrists, he had an appointment to take them out in another week or so. Stella knocked on the door again and he quickly pulled the sweater back down.

"Hey, I'm going to be heading out. Your father just called saying he'd be back around ten and to not wait up." She stood in the doorway, "I made 'chile con queso' tonight, it's on the countertop."

Spencer stood up, "Thank you, if it's half as good as last night's meal and lunch then I'm happy!"

"This is my special recipe, so you're right it _is _good!" She laughed as Spencer walked up to her.

"I'll come down stairs with you."

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Stella grabbed her coat and headed for the door, "Oh! I almost forgot, your father enrolled you at the local high school. You're going to have to pick your extra-curricular classes when you get to school on Monday morning."

Spencer's stomach dropped a little, the fear of having to deal with new people and new bullies frightened him. "Thanks.. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Monday, actually. I'm off on Sundays, so is Mr. Reid." She opened the door and headed to her car, "Goodnight, Spencer!"

He waved to her and closed the door.

It'll be just him and his father. _Tomorrow will be interesting._


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Thank you again for continuing to read this story, I promise the team will be introduced in the next chapter (at least some of them). I'm really excited about this fic because I love high school au's and Criminal Minds.

Also, I just finished chapter 14 and I can't wait until y'all get to read it. (I'm getting more confortable with writing, I think y'all will be able to see that within the next few chapters).

I'm considering posting chapter 5 tomorrow as well, depending on the reviews.

Pretty please review, leave comments on things you might like to see, or just constructive criticism!

Enjoy the chapter!

/

Chapter Four: Sundays Aren't Always Relaxing

Spence sat on the kitchen barstool once again, drinking his coffee and wondering when his father would wake up.

He didn't have to wonder for long, he heard footsteps coming down the stairs.

As his father stepped through the entranceway, his eyebrows shot up. He'd forgotten Spencer was here. Clearing his throat, he greeted his son. "Good morning, how did you sleep?"

"Fine...you're off today?" Spencer replied quickly.

William nodded and walked to the cabinets, pulling out a box of cereal. "Did Mrs. Gualardi tell you about school?"

"Do you mean Stella?" He said curiously, he hadn't been informed on her last name.

"Yes." His father replied blandly, his attention towards the conversation slowly dwindling.

Spencer nodded, and the silence once again engulfed them.

They sat there for nearly half an hour, Mr. Reid reading the paper while Spencer fidgeted with his hands.

"A.. Uh, a surprisingly large amount of Americans reported that they get their news from digital devices rather than newspapers, but the number one source of news is from local news stations. Personally, I prefer having the paper in my hands."

William looked over his paper, a confused look on his face. "That's.. Interesting." It came out as more of question than he'd intended, "Are you saying you want the paper?"

"Oh, um.. No." Spencer quieted down again, he'd been trying to make conversation.. He just wasn't very good at it.

"We should go to the store and pick you up a phone today." William commented, eyes never leaving the sports section.

"Alright." There wasn't much more to say, he wasn't about to tell his father that he, a teenager, had no use for one.

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"I'd suggest getting the hundred-dollar insurance policy, just incase your son breaks his phone or screen." The Apple "genius" as they were called (though Spencer honestly doubted the title) was currently running his spiel at William.

Spencer stood there silently waiting for his dad to just buy the phone so they could activate it.

They had asked him which model he wanted, what color, what- blah blah blah but he just let the two other men decide. The only thing he chose was the case, a nice purple pastel color.

After leaving the store, William brought him into a store to buy clothes for school, even though Spencer politely declined.

Reid ended up actually appreciating his father's insistence on shopping: he needed to buy more long-sleeved shirts if he wanted to hide his scars.

William let him wander around while he did his own shopping, telling Spencer that he didn't have a price limit, and to just get whatever he needed.

His dad ended up grabbing more clothes for Spencer than Spencer had picked out himself, saying that he wanted to make sure he had a full wardrobe.

Some of the shirts were short-sleeved, but Spencer figured he could just wear them at home.

After they checked out, Spencer thanked his father.

"You're welcome, do you want to get something to eat? I usually eat out on Sundays."

"That's okay with me." He replied, following his dad to the food court.

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Spencer watched the people passing by from the table where he sat alone, waiting for his dad who had gone to pick up their food.

They had gone to the mall later than expected because Mr. Reid had an unexpected business call that lasted 2 hours, along with 3 more hours of work.

He checked the time on his new phone, _8:33 PM, _ the mall would be closing soon.

He didn't worry about writing the letter to his mom, he had done so while he waited for his father earlier that day.

Stella was supposed to send both that letter and the one from the day before to Bennington Sanitarium on monday.

_Monday, _ He thought, he had to start school tomorrow and that terrified him.

He hoped that it wouldn't be as bad as his last school. He'd even rather be ignored than beat up.

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Mr. Reid slid into his seat as he passed Spencer his tray of Indian food.

"Thank you, it smells pretty good!" He grinned at the food, glad to take his mind off the memories of beatings.

"No problem." With the hint of a smile, William began eating his own food.

Twenty minutes had passed, neither talking- just enjoying their food.

Finally, Mr. Reid spoke, bringing up a conversation from earlier, "Are you sure you don't want to get your license and a car?"

Reid shook his head, "I've never driven before. I'm better off walking to school, I memorized the directions."

"Okay..but you do need to get your license eventually."

"Yes sir." He said before putting more food in his mouth.

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They'd long since left the mall, but were still a good fifteen minutes away from the house.

William looked towards Spencer, obviously uncomfortable.

"How are you doing? You know, with everything?" His dad changed lanes, "Your doctor in Las Vegas said that you should get a therapist. Do you want to do that?"

Spencer subconsciously held his left wrist, they hadn't really talked about the attempt since the day it happened.

"I'm fine." He didn't want to talk about it, he honestly wasn't sure if he was okay. He wasn't planning on trying again, but he wasn't exactly happy. "I don't know if I want to speak to a therapist or not."

William nodded slowly, "I think it would help. I'm not really..good at that sort of stuff."

Spencer looked out the window, "Maybe."

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.

Once they'd arrived back at the house, Spencer thanked his father again for the new clothes and phone.

William told him it was no problem and that he should get to bed. "Have you good day at school tomorrow."

"I'll try.. Goodnight." Reid walked up the stairs to his bedroom, bags filling up each arm.

After organizing his closet with the new garments, he eyed his bed.

Opting to take a shower in the morning, he climbed under the covers and fell asleep.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Hello again! In this chapter Reid finally goes to school, so we'll get to meet one or two of our other favorite CM characters :) The next chapter will pick up right where this one ends (This will probably happen for the next few chapters).

I love y'all so I decided to post two chapters this week :p This probably won't happen too often because I want to be able to post once a week and as of now, I have 10 other chapters written. This gives me time to be able to not write for a period of time if school/anything gets in the way.

I want to thank y'all for the reviews, follows and favorites.

Please read &amp; review!

/

Chapter 5: The New Kid

The young genius was currently sitting on an uncomfortable chair in his new school's receptionist area, waiting to be called into the principal's office. He had on a long-sleeved, light-blue plaid shirt with dark washed jeans. He made sure the shirt covered his arms completely, he didn't want anyone knowing the reason he was here.

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.

The school was a decent size, with three stories and just under two- thousand students. Spencer was currently watching the front desk lady texting on her phone, ignoring the stack of papers to the right of her.

Her straw-like red hair was tied in what looked to be a painfully tight bun. She was in the middle of typing when footsteps came towards the room, she quickly tucked it away.

An older man with graying hair stopped next to the woman's desk.

"Good morning, Alice." The man greeted in a calming voice.

"Good morning, Jason! Our new student arrived a little bit ago." She pointed towards Spence.

"Ah, Spencer Reid, the genius." The man, whom his father had told him was 'Principal Gideon' made his way towards the teen and stuck out his hand.

"I don't believe in classifying intelligence, but technically, that's me." He quipped, stepping back. "I'm sorry..I don't shake hands, it's nice to meet you, sir."

Mr. Gideon chuckled and motioned for Reid to follow him. "Thank you, Alice."

Spencer followed Gideon from a respectable distance as he listened to him talk.

"So, you're originally supposed to be a sophomore, correct?" He sounded genuinely interested.

"Yes, sir. I would have graduated when I was twelve if my old school had approved of me skipping that many grades." Spencer resented his last school for that fact, and could never help the angry tone that came with the topic.

"That would certainly take a lot of consideration for the school. None the less, I'm glad that you're here. I feel we can give you classes that will challenge you, if only slightly." Jason smiled as he spoke, he doubted any of the core subjects would be difficult for the sixteen year old.

They had entered Mr. Gideon's office, both taking their respective seats. The principal was currently pulling up Spencer's incomplete schedule on his computer.

"Now, we have you signed up for Government and Economic Systems, College Algebra, British Literature and Forensic Science." He paused, opening another window that listed all extracurricular activities, "You need to pick two extra classes."

Spencer read through the long list within two seconds, "I'd like to be a library worker, and the art class I suppose."

Principal Gideon nodded, selecting the two options before printing out his new schedule.

"Well, you just might miss the entire first period today, though I'm sure you can catch up." He stood, "You need to have your school I.D. Photo taken, the students in Technology class deal with that."

Spencer stood as well, he'd already memorized his schedule:

* * *

1st: Forensic Science

2nd: Government &amp; Economics

3rd: British Literature

4th: Art (1st Lunch)

5th: Library Worker

6th: College Algebra

* * *

The principal stopped right before the door, turning towards Spencer. A serious expression spread across his face, and he rested a hand on the teen's shoulder.

"One more thing. I've been informed of your situation, and if you ever need to talk to somebody, we have trained counselors."

Spencer fought off the blush and looked down, nodding. "Okay."

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They'd walked to the second floor and down the third hallway before either had spoken again.

"I'll go ahead and drop you off at the computer lab, you'll be in good hands there. Once you've received your I.D. Go to your next class, which will probably be second period." He stopped at a door, "And don't worry about missing first period or being late to your second. It won't count against you."

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The principal opened the door to the computer lab, instantly grabbing everyone's attention.

"Hello kids, Ms. Meyers." He nodded respectfully towards the woman on the back computer.

Various greetings were mumbled, and some whispers were thrown around.

Spencer looked up and saw a brightly-clothed, plump blonde approaching them. Her heels _click-clacked _across the floor, her dangly bracelets joining in harmony.

Mr. Gideon smiled at the girl, "We have a new student, but I'm guessing you already know that." He sounded almost annoyed, with a speckle of a warning tone.

She just grinned, "I can handle it, don't you worry!"

Gideon laughed and turned to Spencer, "Have a good day, and if you need anything just come see me." There was a deeper meaning to his words that Reid chose to ignore.

As soon as the door closed, the girl grabbed Spencer by the arm- dragging him to another door within the classroom.

"What are you-" He tried to ask his question, but was stopped as she opened the door. "Oh." They were in the room where photos were taken, obvious because of the many backdrops, and well..the camera.

She grinned at him, "I'm Penelope Garcia, tech-goddess extraordinaire!"

Spencer gave her a quizzical look and was about to introduce himself when she'd cut him off.

"And you're Spencer Reid!" She had a bubbly personality that matched her outfit.

"How did you know that?" He felt anxious, were people already talking about him before he'd even attended a class?

"I have my ways, Boy Genius." She winked at him, "But don't worry, I didn't divulge into your file any further than your name and picture. That would be an invasion of personal information, and I only save that for certain jerks."

His eyes widened at that, mentally noting to himself to never cross this 'Penelope'.

"I..um, I should probably take the photo." She seemed nice enough, but that didn't stop the nervousness of being alone with another person. He didn't trust anyone his age enough to assume that they wouldn't hurt him.

She noticed his uneasiness and sat him down on the pedestal in front of the camera. "Say cheese!"

He flashed a broad smile at the lens, which faded quickly after the shutter went off.

"Alrighty, I just need to upload it to your schedule profile." She clicked the buttons on her keyboard faster than anyone he'd ever seen, "Holy crap! You're a senior? I didn't even go that far into your information." She looked up at him, "And we have three classes together! Yay!"

Spencer shifted his weight to his other foot, a small smile gracing his lips, _She's actually excited to be in a class with me? _He thought dubiously.

"I am a senior, I was only allowed to skip two grades." He was definitely starting to like this girl, "What classes do we have together?"

"Second, fourth and fifth! Ooh, I can introduce you to my other friends!" She clapped her hands excitedly as his new I.D. printed out.

Spencer froze, _Other friends?_, does she already consider him a friend? He wasn't sure how things like this worked, but he sure hoped she meant what he was thinking.

She handed him his I.D., along with a lanyard, both a bright blue. She explained that each class had colors, Freshman were green, Sophomores yellow, Juniors were orange and Seniors were blue.

He slipped the required accessory over his head and picked up his messenger bag that he'd laid down to take the picture.

She guided him back through the door, and he followed her to her seat where she was gathering her things.

"The bell is about to ring, we should get near the door." She said to him as she pushed him forward. "Our Government teacher is pretty laid back, we just do notes in there."

Spencer quirked his lips, somewhat disappointed, he was hoping it would be more difficult.

The bell rang and Garcia grabbed Reid's wrist, pulling him behind her. Spencer nearly gasped, he hadn't been expecting that. His sleeve was moving upward on his arm, inch by inch and he panicked.

He shook free of her handle on him, and she stumbled forward at the loss of resistance. Raising an eyebrow as she watched him pull his sleeve down.

A sea of people passed them, occasional glances thrown towards the newer student of the two.

"I'm sorry, I don't like to be touched. It's actually safer to kiss than shake or hold hands."

She gave a devious smile, "My, my Reid..are you saying you want to kiss me?"

He went beet-red, shaking his head desperately, "No, no! I just meant that it's less likely for germs to spread!"

She laughed, "Relax, I'm just joking. It's what friends do! Now come on, we really need to get to class."

Spencer sighed with relief, and followed his new friend Penelope through the crowd.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Thank you again for continuing to read, follow, favorite and review. Y'all are freaking awesome! I'm excited to introduce more characters.

Okay..I said I wouldn't be updating twice a week often (and I probably won't be) but I couldn't stop myself from posting a third chapter because I'm really excited about this story!

So please, please review!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize.

/

Chapter 6: The Day Goes On

Penelope and Spencer entered their second period classroom, nearly the entire class was already seated and watching the younger teenager.

They stopped by the teacher's desk, who was currently making last minute edits on his PowerPoint.

"Morning Mr. Delton! I come bearing the new student!" The peppy blonde tapped her long, bright red nails on his desk.

The man looked up and smiled at the girl before nodding to Spencer. He held his hand out, "Nice to meet you, Mr. Reid. I'm Mr. Delton, I've heard a lot about you!"

Before Spencer could explain his refusal to shake hands, Penelope piped up. "He doesn't shake hands sir, it spreads too many germs."

"Ah.." The teacher nodded, "Pen, why don't you show Spencer here to your seats?"

He followed Penelope to the vacant seats in the back-right corner of the classroom, while she greeted various seniors and waved to a few.

Sitting down in the seat close to the window, Spencer looked over to Penelope, who was pulling out a large feather pen from her purse.

"Who's this, Garcia?" A black-haired girl turned around, glancing at Reid before facing the blonde.

Spencer's eyes flickered towards the girl. She held her head high, not with arrogance, but with a confidence that he wished he had.

"I'm Sp-Spencer Reid." He fumbled slightly on his words, his nerves getting the best of him.

She smiled knowingly, "I'm Emily, you look a little young to be in this class."

He almost sighed in frustration, _obviously _he was young, why can't people stop stating the obvious?

"I'm sixteen, but I'm a senior." His gaze briefly landed on Emily's face, before ultimately falling to his desk.

"That's pretty cool." She replied honestly as the bell rang.

"Oh! Garcia, JJ told me that she can't go to the movies on Thursday because her mom is making her do some family thing." She rolled her eyes before continuing, "And you know Will won't go without her."

Penelope sighed dramatically, "Well maybe we should reschedule. She's the one who picked the movie."

Prentiss shook her head, "She says we should just go and see it, and that she and Will will watch it a different day."

Spencer sat there watching the exchange awkwardly, feeling out of place.

"Alright cool, I'll tell every one else at lunch." The self-proclaimed tech goddess agreed to the change in plans.

Reid played with his fingers, waiting for the class to begin. He didn't hear Penelope talking to him, he only perked up when she ran her hand in front of his face.

"Earth to Spencer!" Emily and Pen looked at him amused. "I asked you a question." She laughed at his expression.

He looked at the two, "Um, I missed what you said. Can you repeat the question?" Their laughter made him feel self-conscious.

"Do you want to go to the movies with me, Prentiss and a couple of our friends?"

He was surprised, he'd never hung out with people really, he'd never even been asked to. He wondered if it was the goal-post all over again. The panic bubbled in his stomach, the memories of the humiliation and taunting filling his over-active brain.

"...Spencer?" Emily had a concerned expression on her face, he hadn't responded to them in over a minute.

::

_"Alexa wants to hang out with you after school Spencer." The popular blonde teen's best friend had pulled him aside from the class, whispering excitedly._

_Spencer smiled, "Really?" He never had a friend, and for the most popular girl in school to want to be his? That would be amazing!_

_The girl smiled back, "Meet her at the football field after school." She walked away._

_._

_._

_12 year old Spencer walked out onto the field, expecting to see Alexa Lisbon. And he did see her, but she wasn't alone._

_There in front of him, stood a very scary looking football team, along with Alexa's cheerleader friends._

_He frowned, "Wha-what's going on?"_

_Two of the football players grabbed him, his struggle was useless, they easily over-powered him._

_"No! Please leave me alone!" He was screaming desperately when they began to remove his clothes._

_They laughed as they dragged him to the goalpost, the sound of duct tape being ripped from it's roll._

_As they admired their handiwork, tears rolled down his cheeks. They laughed and took pictures before leaving the field._

_He screamed for them to get him down, but the help didn't come._

_._

_._

_The sun was going down when the groundskeeper spotted him, running to his aid. The tears had long since stopped, and an emotionless feeling graced him._

_"Oh my god, let me get you down!" The older man grabbed his pocket knife out of his tool belt._

_He talked to the child as he supported his weight, gently cutting the tape. "Who did this to you? How long have you been up here?"_

_Spencer lied, saying he didn't know the kids who did this to him. "I've been here since after school let out."_

_The man obviously didn't believe the lie, "We need to inform the principal of this, you know."_

_Spencer shook his head weakly, "Please, it's no use. I just want to go home."_

_._

_._

_The groundskeeper, John, as he'd informed Spencer, had given him a ride home after getting a change of clothes from the lost and found. He'd convinced Spencer to report the incident._

_He originally called the middle school principal, before Reid corrected him. The man just nodded and called the high school._

_._

_._

_Spencer walked into his home, his mother's ranting floated through the house._

_He sighed and climbed the stairs, "No use in telling her. She wouldn't remember tomorrow anyways." _

::

Emily and Penelope exchanged glances when he didn't break out of his daze.

"Spencer?" Em poked Reid, successfully pulling him from his silence.

He looked at them, "I..I don't know if I can."

Their eyebrows scrunched together in worry for the new kid. Penelope's voice softened, "Okay, just let me know if you can."

Emily turned back around as the teacher stood, ready to begin his lesson.

Penelope smiled kindly at the younger teen before switching her attention to Delton.

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Spencer was currently sitting in his British Literature class with wide eyes, listening to quite possibly the strictest teacher he'd ever met.

"The grades on the last test you all took were _horrendous!_. Nearly all of you failed! I expect to see a full classroom on Friday afternoon for retakes!" Ms. Strauss spoke sharply, and the Genius flinched with each word.

His desk partner snickered quietly at the fearful Spencer, before tapping on his shoulder lightly.

Reid turned his head to the left to see a tan guy with a smirk on his face.

"Don't worry about Strauss, I think she's more bark than bite. Though I wouldn't mind if she bit me"

Spencer glanced at the woman again before looking back at the other teen, disbelief written on his features.

The tan teen laughed again, "I'm David, your new prison cellmate."

Reid smiled lightly, his reply cut off from the teacher's rising voice.

"Mr. Rossi, care to explain why you're interrupting my class?" Her arms crossed, and an eyebrow went up.

"I was just introducing myself to the new student." His response was both lackadaisical and charismatic, and the teacher surprisingly relaxed (if only slightly).

"Ah yes, Mr. Spencer Reid. Welcome to British Literature, I'm sure this class will be no problem for you." She paused, "Unlike the rest of the class!" She turned around to write on the board.

Spencer shrunk back at the few glares thrown his way. _Thanks for that, Ms. Strauss_ he thought wearily, _New enemies on day one._

David flipped off the onlookers, "Leave the kid alone." They quickly turned away.

Spencer looked at him in shock, "Um.. Thank you."

Rossi nodded dismissively, "No need to thank me, those guys are idiots anyways."

A small smile appeared on his lips as he faced the teacher again.

Throughout the hour, David would make comments to him. One particular wisecrack made him laugh out loud, earning him a scolding from Strauss that left him beet-red and near tears from the confrontation.

David patted his shoulder reassuringly, his jokes never ceasing.

That left Reid feeling a little better, and he decided he wouldn't mind sharing a desk with Rossi for the rest of the year.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Thank you for the favs/follows and reviews! I love receiving them! I hope you enjoy this chapter! I hope this pace isn't too slow for you all, I kind of like writing like this (for now). We'll meet more characters this chapter, and see how they react to the genius.

Please read &amp; review!

/

Chapter 7: I'd like to introduce you to Spencer Reid

"Watch it!"

Spencer was shoved to the side by a girl with dark blonde hair talking loudly on her cellphone.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't see you!" Reid apologized, even though it was the girl's fault for the run-in.

She rolled her eyes at him and walked away. He re-adjusted his messenger bag and started looking for his art class again.

He knew he was in the correct hallway, but he somehow managed to miss the class _three times._

The corridor was emptying and he was too afraid to ask any of the students for help, so he was wandering aimlessly from door to door.

The bell rang, and Spencer threw his head back in frustration. _This classrom doesn't even exist! It literally skips from H121 to H123!_

He supposed he should go see Principal Gideon for help, he just _really _didn't want to. He didn't want to need help from anyone.

He walked the hall once more, still unable to find the room.

Resigned, he walked slowly down the hall to get back to the commons. He hung his head, his hand massaging the back of his neck as he went.

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"OOF!" Spencer fell to the ground, he hadn't noticed the fast footsteps rounding the corner at the same time he was.

"Oh shit! I'm so sorry! Here, let me help you up." A muscular, and who Reid assumed was mixed, teenager was looking down at Spencer apologetically.

The genius looked up, _Oh my god. _ He'd never seen anyone as gorgeous as the boy standing above him. His eyebrows were thick and black, pulled together in concern. He was wearing a light orange v-neck and dark jeans.

Spencer could feel himself blushing, and he was sure it wasn't the embarrassment of falling.

"Hello? Are you alright?" The darker teen was holding his hand out to him.

Spencer opened and closed his mouth a few times, before abandoning his rule of no handshakes, and gripping the handsome teen's hand.

"I'm..okay. Thanks for actually stopping." He smiled shyly at the older guy. He smiled back broadly, his white teeth shining.

He pulled him up, and Spencer's blush deepened.

"Well, I'm sorry for running into you, but I really need to get to class." He moved to turn, and Spencer took a chance to ask him for directions.

"Um.. I'm actually looking for my class. Do..do you know where the art room is? On my schedule it says H122 but it's not here."

He smiled again, successfully making Spencer's heart flutter. "That's actually where I'm going. The schedules always have the number wrong. Follow me."

He gladly walked beside him, "Thanks again. I don't think I ever would have found it."

"It's okay kid, I'm guessing you're new?"

Spencer felt a slight tinge of annoyance at the 'kid' nickname, maybe he wouldn't think he was a child if he knew he was a senior. "I am. It's my senior year."

The thick eyebrows shot up, "Wow. So..what's your name?"

"I'm Spencer, Spencer Reid." They were approaching the door now.

"I'm Derek Morgan. Nice to meet you." He patted him on the shoulder and opened the door Reid had passed cluelessly so many times.

"Derek, how nice of you to show up! And who is that with you?" A skinny, short woman with a pixie cut smiled fondly at the duo. The rest of the class watching them as well.

"Hey Mrs. Varahl, coach held me back and then I ran into Spencer in the hall way, literally." He pointed a careless thumb towards the tall teen standing behind him.

She walked up to them, "Nice to meet you Spencer, I wasn't aware I was getting a new student today. Could I see your schedule?"

Spencer sifted through his bag and pulled out the sheet of paper while Mrs. Varahl dismissed Derek to his seat.

Most of the eyes shifted to Morgan as he walked to a table, the seat next to him conveniently empty.

"Alrighty, you can choose a seat. Welcome to art!"

Spencer smiled, placing the paper back in his bag. He looked up and around the room, three seats were vacant.

He looked towards Derek expectantly, and in turn the teen patted the chair next to him.

Reid was beyond happy as he walked to the table, he didn't even feel the few eyes left gazing at him.

"Hello again." Morgan greeted him as he settled into his seat.

"H-hey." He placed his bag on the table when he heard a voice on Derek's other side.

"Hey Derek, you ready for the big game on Friday?" A girl smiled at him sweetly, her voice flirtatious.

Spencer instantly felt jealous, _Stop it! You just met this guy and you're jealous? He's just being nice to you out of pity._ He reprimanded himself angrily, but the jealousy grew when Derek stared back at the girl with a smile.

"You bet I am, you going to come watch me play?"

The girl smiled and nodded, and that's when it hit Spencer. _Are you kidding me? He's a football player? _ He hadn't realized what the girl's question truly meant until Derek answered.

_Why does he have to be a football player? He's just pretending to be nice like Alexa did... _ Reid frowned, he already knew he didn't have a chance in getting Derek Morgan to like him, but now the chance was in the negative. If anything, he'll just hurt him.

"You're lucky, Spencer. We're beginning a new project today!" The teacher was at the front of the room, passing out a rubric for said project- successfully pulling Reid out of his thoughts.

"I want you all to paint a still-life, of any object you choose." She spoke again, "It could be a piece of fruit, or a car, anything! So sketch something today, and we'll start painting tomorrow."

The papers were handed to Derek, and he gave one to Spencer. "What are you going to do?"

He looked at him, and couldn't help but trust him and like him. "I'm honestly not sure. How about you?"

"I think I'm going to paint a house." Derek said thoughtfully, "I've always liked architecture."

Spencer smiled at him, "The word Architecture comes from the Greek word arkhitekton, meaning "chief builder".

One of Derek's brows lifted, while the other scrunched up. His head tilted a little, "Hm. I didn't know that."

The white boy's cheeks turned pink, _What a stupid thing to say..why can't I just turn off these statistics?_

"What else do you know about architecture?" Derek looked at him curiously.

"You..you actually _want _to hear more facts?" He didn't believe it.

"Yeah, sure." He smiled at him briefly before going back to his drawing.

He grinned, and continued to tell Derek the many, _many_ things he knew about the subject while Derek sketched out his project and listened to the excited rambling.

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.

"Alright boys and girls, the lunch bell is about to ring. Make sure not to leave any trash in here." Mrs. Varahl called out before sitting back in her seat.

Derek looked towards Spencer, "..Do you have anywhere to sit at lunch today?"

Reid scanned his face, he wondered if Derek was going to ask him to sit with him. He wanted him to, but would feel bad abandoning Garcia, though her invitation was probably out of pity.

"Surprisingly, a girl I met earlier invited me to sit with her and her friends."

"Already pulling chicks on your first day?" Derek laughed, "Well, that's good. I guess I'll see you tomorrow." _He almost seemed dissapointed.. _Spencer thought, before dismissing the ridiculous idea.

"Yeah." He beamed, "Maybe we'll actually make it to class on time."

Derek smirked before heading out the door, "Bye, Spence."

He walked to the door, a small smile on his lips.

"Have a good day, Spencer!" The teacher called out as he passed her.

"You too, Mrs. Varahl." The smiled stayed, and he ventured off to find Penelope.

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Spencer spotted the oddly-fashioned blonde sitting at a circular table with a girl and two boys.

He walked up nervously, unsure if he was really welcome to sit with them. One of the males looked rather serious, and a bit intimidating. The girl, and the boy next to her, however, were kind looking.

"Uh..hi Penelope." He was standing behind her, she was at the side of the table closest to him while the blonde was sitting next to her.

"Spencer!" She squealed, clapping her hands. "I'm glad you came. You can sit right here." She pointed to left of her.

"So this is the grade-skipper you've been talking about?" The skinny blonde girl smiled at him as he sat down. The guys nodded towards him in acknowledgement.

Garcia smiled, "I'd like to introduce you to Spencer Reid."

He smiled gawkily at them, unsure of what to say.

Penelope continued talking, "This is Jennifer Jerau, but we call her JJ." She pointed to the blonde, then to the figure next to her, "That is Will LaMontange, he's her boyfriend." She then looked towards the stoic, black-haired guy, "And that over there is Aaron Hotchner."

He nodded, saying hello to the three.

David sat down next to Hotchner, and saw Spencer. "We meet again." He drawled, "I hope your other teachers are better than Strauss."

"I think so." He replied as Prentiss sat down, "Hello, Emily."

"Hey Reid, glad you found the table in this sea of fucking idiots." She was fuming, Spencer wasn't sure if she was mad at him.

She looked at his anxiety-ridden face, "Sorry, some jerk just ran into me and his drink got all over my jacket." She placed the ruined jacket on the floor next to her.

He sighed in relief, he thought she was upset that he was sitting with them.

"Aw, Baby Girl! You gave my seat away?" Spencer instantly recognized the deep voice, and he turned towards it.

"Sorry, my chocolate god, but we have a new member." She smiled at the handsome teen. Spencer fought the frown that threatened to show, _I guess they're dating._

"Ah, Spencer! You're stealing my girl? I should've known!" He sat in the seat next to him, placing his tray in front of him.

"Oh, no I-I didn't steal her? I.." He was confused, did Derek actually think he would take his girlfriend?

Penelope giggled, "Oh, please Derek. I already asked him if he wanted to kiss me and he denied my advances."

Derek's eyes widened before going back to his charming smile, "You asked him to kiss you?"

Aaron rolled his eyes at Garcia with a small smile, and she laughed.

Rossi spoke, changing the subject after seeing how uncomfortable the new kid seemed to be and lifted his head towards Reid, "I think Strauss scared the poor kid to death today."

"Well, Strauss is pretty damn terrifying." Will's thick accent contributed to the conversation.

Spencer reddened slightly, "Does she always scream like that?"

They all said 'yes' in unison, causing the group to laugh, and Reid to smile.

"Don't worry Pretty Boy, I'll protect you from that old bat." Derek threw his arm around Spencer's shoulder, and much to Penelope's surprise- the kid didn't pull away. He seemed so jumpy when she grabbed his arm earlier.

Spencer froze, the arm around his shoulder was the most psychical contact he'd had outside of his mother, and he didn't even mind it.

"Th-thanks." His cheeks were on fire, Derek's nickname for him was replaying constantly in his head.

The arm pulled away and Spencer resisted the urge to follow the contact. A few curious glances and smirks were thrown at the younger teen, and he reached into his bag to pull out his lunch that Stella (regardless of his refusal not to) made him.

"What's the rest of your schedule, Spencer?" Aaron asked, he figured he'd help him find his classes.

"I'm a library worker next period, and then I have College Algebra with Mr. Hultz."

"Ugh, I hate algebra." Derek said with disgust, "But hey, we have another class together, along with Aaron and Will."

He nodded before asking "Why do you hate algebra?"

Derek looked at him disbelieving, "Don't tell me you like it!"

Emily smiled at Spencer, "He's a genius, of course he likes math."

"A genius?" He stared into Spencer's eyes, "Like an actual genius?"

"Well, technically..I mean I have an IQ of 187, I read 20,000 words per minute and I have an eidetic memory, but I don't believe in classifying intelligence." He looked down at his sandwich, picking at the bread.

The group's jaws collectively dropped, except for Hotch's of course, but even he couldn't keep the astonishment out of his features.

"That's insane!"

"Damn, kid."

"Wow."

The various comments and reactions almost made him wish he hadn't told them, but he was just glad they weren't beating him up for doing so.

The conversation changed, but ultimately stayed on Spencer. They asked him where he was from, what he liked to do, and almost every other question under the sun (Not that he answered too many of them) along with answering their own questions so the kid could know more about them.

Soon, the bell signaling both 2nd lunch and 5th period rang out, and Aaron showed him to the library since it was on the way to his next class.

"What class do you have?" He asked timidly, walking beside the sharply dressed teen.

"Theatre Arts, we're working on a play about pirates right now." His tone was neutral.

"Wow, I didn't expect..you to be into that sort of thing. Not that I know you..you just.." His voice faltered.

"It's okay, no one does." He smiled then, and Spencer was relieved he didn't take it the wrong way.

They stopped at the library, "See you in algebra."

Hotch nodded firmly and walked away, and Spencer opened the door to every introvert's safe haven.

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Reid was currently sitting next to Will, behind Aaron and Derek. He couldn't help but stare at the back of the half-black teen's head, lost in thought.

He'd already completed the assignment the teacher handed out within 5 minutes, but it remained on his desk. Will nudged him, asking for help a certain question.

"It's minus 4AC, you just left off the 'A'." He wrote out the new equation, and Will worked through it, thanking Spencer.

His attention switched back to Derek, resting there until the two teens in front of him started putting away their things.

They turned around as Will put his binder away, obviously bored of the class.

"So are you going with JJ to her great-aunt's birthday party?" Aaron questioned Will, who in turn sighed.

"Unfortunately, yeah. She doesn't even want to go, but she begged me, so I promised her I'd go." Will didn't look to happy about the plans.

"I thought most people liked going to parties?" Spencer said quietly, unsure if he was supposed to contribute to the conversation or not.

"Not when the host is a bitter, old cat-lady who complains about no one visiting her the whole time." Will huffed out a breath, and Derek laughed.

And my god, it was the most beautiful laugh Spencer had ever heard.

"You're just mad because she caught you and Jayje making out on Thanksgiving." Aaron said, a small smirk on his face. _Maybe he's not as reserved as he seems._ Spencer thought.

"Yeah, well..she could have knocked!" Will responded resentfully.

"On the front door?" Derek laughed out.

Will flipped them off, and the two older teens just shook their heads, chuckling, while Spencer quieted again.

A vibration was heard then, and Derek pulled out his phone.

"Dude, Kevin just texted me asking me to ask Garcia if she wants to go on a second date with him." He looked up skeptically, "How can you be scared to ask someone on a _second_ date when they kissed you on the first one?"

Now Reid was confused, _Are Derek and Penelope not a couple?_

"Give him a break, I think I'd be scared to ask her too. She'd probably bite my head off if I didn't do it in a 'fabulously romantic' way." Hotch laughed and air-quoted Garcia's words.

Derek and Will grinned, obviously agreeing with the speculation. Spencer spoke up.

"I..uh, I thought you and Penelope were dating?"

Will let out a hard laugh, and Aaron rolled his eyes once more. The Louisianan shook his head as he spoke, "Yeah right, Derek Morgan in a relationship? That'll be the day."

Derek punched Will on his arm, "Shut up, man." His voice was filled with humor, not denying the accusation.

The conversation died down as the teacher asked everyone who hadn't finished their work, to complete it as homework. Soon, the rest of the class was packing up.

Spencer looked down at his watch, 3:25 pm. _Wow, today went by surprisingly fast. _

When he looked up, he caught Derek's eyes on him. He blushed, half-smiling at the 18-year old. Derek returned the smile before quickly averting his gaze.

When the final bell rang, the 4 said their good-byes and headed in separate directions. Spencer stopped at a water fountain, waiting for the mass of students to leave before attempting it on his own.

He finally left when a teacher told him he needed to clear the building. Smiling to himself, the teenager made his way to his father's house, reflecting on how the day went completely opposite than he'd expected.

_I actually made friends, and no one tried to beat me up! _ He thought happily, hoping that tomorrow would go just as smoothly.

/

PLEASE review! i like to know how I'm doing.


	8. Chapter 8

Criminal Minds: ch 8

A/N: I know this chapter isn't the best, and that it's short, but I'm keeping every chapter at least above 1,000 words and this is a mini-chapter for what happened after his first day.

Just to let y'all know, I'm about to start writing chapter 18 so I'm 10 chapters ahead, I also have a job so I probably won't be posting twice a week (I've stated that before but I don't seem to follow my own rules).

Depending on the amount of reviews I might go ahead and post chapter 9 tomorrow night so y'all can see his second day of school, which I really want you guys to read!

So, please read, enjoy and review!

/

Chapter 8: After School

Spencer opened the door tentatively, still not feeling comfortable treating this place like his home. He closed the door quietly, and he heard the vacuum running somewhere in the house.

Climbing the stairs to his room, he heard his name being called.

"Spencer! You're home!" Mrs. Gualardi was at the top of the staircase, vacuum in hand.

He nodded briefly, meeting her in her spot, "Hi Stella, how are you?"

She dismissed the question with the wave of a hand, "I'm just fine, the _important _question is, how did your day go?"

He paused, a simper forming, "It was actually pretty good. I think I made some friends." _And the most handsome guy I've ever seen._

He was embarrassed about how happy he was, but tried not to let it show.

She smiled at him, the dimples on her face appearing, "That's great, I bet your father will be happy to hear that."

His smile dropped at the thought of his dad, but he kept the happy in his voice for her sake, "Yeah, I'm sure he will."

"Alright, well you go on and do whatever. I need to finish vacuuming." She started down the stairs, leaving Spencer to himself.

He walked down the long hallway and into his room, glad to have some time to himself.

The day, while truly great, was overwhelming. He was ecstatic that he made (or assumed he made) friends, but the stares and whispers had really bothered him. They reminded him of his last school, and those whispers and stares were usually followed by name-calling and abuse. He cringed thinking of the amount of times he'd been stuffed into a locker, or kicked in the stomach while onlookers laughed at his misfortune. Stella's words from the first time they'd met were ringing in his ear, _I hope you can find happiness here._ Well, he hoped so too.

He selected a book at random (though, he memorized their order long ago) and leaned back on his bed. He finished the lengthy book within the hour, and unlike himself, he didn't select another.

He pulled back his sleeves, examining the deep scars and sighed.

Slowly, he got up and went for his notebook. He began writing to his mother:

_Dear Mom, today was the first day at_ _my new school. It's very different from Las Vegas in many ways, much as I expected. The classwork appears to be easy, and the teachers are rather laid-back (for the most part). I met people who I believe will be my friends._

_There is Penelope Garcia, she calls herself a 'tech-goddess' and dresses loudly. She was the first student to speak to me, and she is extremely nice._

_Penelope (She prefers to be called Garcia) introduced me to Emily Prentiss (who also prefers to be called by her last name. They even refer to me by mine). Emily isn't as exuberant as Garcia, but she seems just as friendly._

_I met David Rossi in my British Literature class (I believe I would be able to teach the class if I weren't so afraid of what the teacher would do to me). He is quite sarcastic and funny, he also stood up for me in class._

_I got lost on my way to my Art class and ran into Derek Morgan. He is a football player, which surprised me because he doesn't fit the stereotype. He even saved a seat for me in class. _

-He stopped writing, his mother wasn't aware of his sexuality and he was planning to keep it that way. He wasn't sure if telling anyone was a good idea. He also didn't want to worry her, so he decided not to include any of his darker thoughts.-

_At lunch, which Garcia invited me to, I was reunited with the people I met earlier: Penelope, Emily, David, and Derek. They're apparently all friends. I met the rest of their group as well: William LaMontange, Jennifer Jereau, and Aaron Hotchner._

_Will and JJ (Jennifer) are dating, they both are kind and quiet._

_Aaron is very serious looking but he is actually in Drama, which according to JJ and Emily, he only got into because of a girl named Haley Brooks._

_The day went fairly well, I received plenty of looks and a few name-callings but not nearly as many as I expected. I think this may be a good place for me._

_I don't see Dad often, he works most of the day but we do have dinner together. His extremely caring housekeeper, Stella, prepares all of the meals (which honestly makes me feel guilty). I'm still getting used to sleeping and living here, but I will get used to it as long as I know you're getting help._

_I've missed you every day since our last time together in the hospital. I don't believe I'll ever be able to stop apologizing to you. I hope they are treating you well, and I hope that you are doing well. I want to see you as soon as I can._

_I love you, mom._

_~ Spencer. _

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"How was your first day?" William questioned Spencer, who was currently sitting across from him, eating the spaghetti that Stella had made.

Forgetting his manners he slurped up a noodle, causing sauce to splatter around his mouth. William didn't look very impressed.

He dabbed away the mess before answering, "It was okay, I had to miss my first period though, because the principal was setting everything up for me."

Mr. Reid nodded, "Do you think the classes will be challenging enough for you?"

Spencer paused, "...No, but I don't mind the classes I'm in."

His father's eyebrows raised slightly, "Oh? Why's that?" He grinned, "Is there a pretty girl in your class?"

He shifted uncomfortably, "Uh, no. But I met some people today. They're pretty nice."

His dad nodded again, "Good, that's good. Maybe it will help you be nor-" He stopped, "It's good you'll have friends."

Spencer looked down, _normal_, he thought with a scoff, _I don't think I'll ever be normal._

"You'll actually be out doing things, experiencing life, you know?" He was gesturing towards nothing with his fork, "You don't have to worry about caring for your mother or cooking or even cleaning."

"Yeah." His father didn't know the half of his responsibilities when he lived in Vegas. He could feel a little bit of anger rise in his chest_, It should have been dad taking care of her. Of me._ Maybe that's what his father was trying to do now, or maybe he was just stuck with Spencer.

"So..um..how was your day?" Spencer asked, trying to change the subject.

William answered, "It was a productive day. I finally settled a case that's been dragging on for the past three weeks...I had to delay it because of the _trip_ to Las Vegas."

Spencer flushed slightly, spinning the noodles around his fork. "Sorry." He practically whispered it.

"It's getting late. You should go to your room and relax, and I have paperwork to catch up on." The elder man looked at the increasingly uneasy teenager before standing and leaving the table.

He stared after his father and then gathered both of their dishes, heading toward the kitchen.

_I'm just an inconvenience to him._

He rinsed out their glasses, and scrubbed the silverware clean. After placing the dishes in the dishwasher, he retreated to his bedroom.

Spencer pulled his covers close, wrapping himself in a cocoon. He let the quiet take over, but his mind started back up with anxiety for tomorrow. He had to go to a new class and return to all of the others. He hoped his friends would be just as welcoming tomorrow as they had been today.

He mulled over various facts and statistics in his head in an attempt to lull himself to sleep, or at least distract him.

Finally, at 1:03 am, his eyes drooped and he dozed off.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Welcome back! I hope you're enjoying the story so far, and I hope you continue to read and review :) Thank you for all of the follows, favs, and reviews! Yep, second update in one week again..y'all just shouldn't listen to me when I say that I don't do that a lot.

And wow, I'm actually writing a whole school day in one chapter!

Also, I'm almost done with chapter 18...I've really liked writing these chapters!

Please please please review!

/

Chapter 9: Cliques Are Overrated

Spencer Reid sat at the barstool, across from Stella, nursing a cup of coffee. The grogginess had yet to pass, and he'd been up for nearly half an hour.

"Maybe all that sugar contradicts the effects of caffeine?" Stella laughed as she stared at his disoriented expression.

"Actually, there was research study done in 2010 that showed that coffee has a much more potent effect on the brain if it is taken with sugar." He was more alert now.

"Scientists at the University of Barcelona in Spain found taking caffeine and sugar at the same time boosted the brain's performance more than taking them on their own."

She smirked and rolled her eyes.

"The researchers now believe each one boosts the effect of the other on brain functions such as attention span and working memory, but considering how often there is new research about coffee and caffeine and the like, there may be some chance that you're corre-"

She rubbed her eyes warily, interrupting the teen with a laugh, "Oh no, what have I done?"

He paused, slightly self-concious, "Sorry. I tend to ramble."

She patted his arm, "No need to apologize, I was just joking!" She smiled at him, taking his now empty cup. "Go and get ready for school, kid."

"Thanks" He left her to her job, going back to his room.

His dad was already gone, true to his word that he worked a lot. He supposed that was for the best, he knew his father didn't particularly like him or he wouldn't have left him in the first place.

::

_"Dad? Where are you going?" Nine year old Spencer stared at his father who was currently packing a suitcase, at three in the morning._

_William looked up in surprise, "Spencer!" He glanced towards his wife, who was currently crying._

_Spencer wasn't stupid. He knew what was happening, he just wished he was wrong._

_"You can't just leave us." She cried._

_"How do you expect me to care for you when you can't even care for yourself?"_

_"I can, William!" She screamed back, fidgeting._

_"Oh yeah? What day is it today?" He asked, knowing she had no clue. Then again, he didn't really either._

_"That's not fair!" She yelled._

_He turned back to his suitcase._

_"You're a coward, William!" Diana screamed at her husband, who was doing his best to ignore everyone as he continued packing. Tears threatened to form as the smart child watched the scene unfold._

_His father grabbed his suitcase- now full, and left the room. Spencer and his mom followed him, "You can't just leave! What about Spencer? At least take him, he needs to be taken care of!"_

_His eyes locked with his son's as he shook his head, "I can't do that. Goodbye, son."_

_He walked out the front door._

_It felt as though time had stopped. He felt arms wrap around him, he felt himself being pulled into his mother's embrace. They stayed like that for a long time, and his eyes never left the front door._

_Eventually his mom pulled back, "I'm so sorry, baby." She watched him sadly._

_"It's not your fault, mom." A lie- it was her fault, only partly though. He knew his dad wanted to get away from both of them. He slowly made his way back to his room, to attempt some sleep, though he knew it wouldn't come. He looked back before entering the hallway, "I love you."_

_Diana sighed and closed her eyes, "I love you too, Spence...Happy Birthday."_

::

His head rested against the wall as the memories flooded back, a sullen mood setting over him. _Maybe if I had been more into sports and not so damn weird..maybe he wouldn't have left._

His fist knotted into a ball as he pushed himself off of the wall, forcing himself to get dressed like he was supposed to.

He grabbed the nearest long-sleeved shirt, along with a gray vest. Pulling the sleeves passed his wrists, he snatched a pair of black pants and put those on as well. He completed his outfit with his well worn-in vans.

He walked to the bathroom, inspecting his pale complexion and the dark bags under his eyes- something he'd had all of his life. He sighed and grabbed his brushes: tooth and hair.

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Spencer fidgeted with the strap of his bag as he passed the school's office, nodding to principal Gideon. It felt like the first day of school again, and even though he was looking forward to seeing his new friends he was still full of fear and anxiety.

_Forensic Science with Mr. Hufely._ He reminded himself as he walked in the direction of the science classes, hoping to get there before the bell rang.

He felt eyes on him as he searched for the room, but he tried his best to ignore them. _They're just wondering who the new kid is...they aren't going to mess with you,_ He assured himself as he located Mr. Hufely's door.

He hadn't reached the door before he'd been slammed into a locker. He stared at the offender, panic evident on his face.

"So you're the new genius, right?" The bulky teenager sneered at him, hands pressed against either of Reid's shoulders. His two comrades standing behind him incase he'd need help, not that he would.

"I..I.." Most people had the 'Flight or Fight' response, but not Spencer. When he was in a dangerous situation, his first reaction was to forget how to walk and talk.

"You don't sound very smart, or are you just too good to talk to me?" The bully cocked his head at him.

"Well?" One of the guy's buddies asked harshly.

"I'm the new student, but I don't consider myself a genius." He sobered up now, hopefully he could talk himself out of his predicament. Not that talking had ever helped this before.

The attacker scoffed, but had no chance to say anything more.

"Darius! What do you think you're doing?" A short, balding man raced up to them, pulling the aggressive teen off of Spencer.

"We were just talking, Mr. Hufely." Darius, as he now knew him, responded with an easy smile on his face. His friends had scattered away when the bell sounded.

"Oh, I'm sure." He glanced at Spencer before writing something down on a paper and handing it to the harasser.

"Go to the office now, Mr. Scheffle." He glared at him, "And I'll be calling Principal Gideon to make sure you've arrived."

Darius scowled and stalked off, throwing a pissed-off stare at Spencer in the process.

Reid let go of a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding.

"Get to class, son." The shorter man told him, "And don't worry about him, he'll be reprimanded."

"You're Mr. Hufely?" Spencer's voice cracked out as the man began to walk away.

He stopped, "I am. I assume you're Spencer Reid?"

He nodded at the teacher. "Follow me then." He started towards his classroom once more, Reid in tow.

"Unfortunately, I must tell you, that Darius is in my first period as well." The man informed him as he walked through the doorway, leading Spencer to his work desk.

_Just my luck, _ thought Spencer as he spotted Darius' friends near the back of the class, just as scary-looking as before.

"You can sit in the last available seat, right near my desk." He pointed to the front seat across from them, as Reid looked up he noticed all eyes were on him.

He brought his head back down, his face now a bright red. He nodded to the teacher before taking his seat.

He kept his eyes trained on the teacher for the rest of the period, not giving the girls who had commented on his wardrobe choices, or the people who called him variations of 'nerd' the satisfaction of seeing his reactions.

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He was feeling increasingly out of place as he strolled through the halls from class to class.

In second period, Emily and Penelope were so involved in their conversation of who was hotter: Loki or Thor, that Spencer couldn't really start a conversation with the two. Not that he really knew what to say. So he sat quietly, thinking about the question himself, but never answering out loud.

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Third period was similar to the day before, David pulling him out of his bad mood slightly with his wisecracks.

"So, how is your second day in this place?" Rossi asked as the girl in front of them passed back their assignment.

Spencer looked up, debating on whether or not he should lie or tell him the truth.

The Italian teen watched him, "Not so good?"

He shrugged, "It's nothing I'm not used to." He didn't look at Rossi, choosing to stare at his paper instead.

He gave Spencer a contemplating look, unsure of what to say. "And what exactly is it you're used to?"

"..Did you know that the first known contraceptive was crocodile dung, used by Egyptians in 2000 B.C.?" Spencer asked, anxious to change the subject.

David's eyes widened before he bursted into a fit of shock-fueled laughter.

"Mr. Rossi!" Strauss stared him down, the rest of the class' gaze on him as well, "Care to share what's so funny?"

He subdued himself (for the most part), wiping a tear from his eye. A smile still on his face, he laughed out, "I don't think you'd appreciate the humor."

The teacher rolled her eyes, "Then do keep the laughter to yourself."

Rossi faced Reid again, trying to contain his laughter. "I think you may be the weirdest person I know, and I've known Garcia for years."

At Spencer's dejected look he added, "That's a good thing."

"Well..thank you, I guess." A small quirk of his lips appearing, he wondered why David thought he was so funny.

As they worked, an occasional chuckle would slip out of Rossi's mouth, remembering the fact about contraception. Spencer found himself smiling through the rest of the class, his morose state-of-mind evening out a bit.

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He was putting his finishing touches on a sketch of a jack-o-lantern when Derek walked through the door of their art class.

"Hello Derek." Reid greeted as the athletic boy sat down.

"Hey." No smile, no more words. Just him getting his own sketch out. The tardy bell rang and everyone shuffled to their seats.

Spencer frowned slightly and the teacher closed the door. "Alright guys, come pick a canvas and then get your paint and paintbrushes."

A few students stood to do as they were told, "Oh, Derek! Could you show Spencer where everything is?" She smiled at the teen.

Derek nodded then looked at Reid's drawing, "That's a cool drawing, man."

His face brightened, "Thanks, yours looks good too."

"Thanks." He smiled, standing up, "Let's go get our stuff."

Spencer followed him across the classroom to a set of cabinets where students were lined up.

"I guess we can walk together to lunch now, huh?" Derek eyed him.

"Yeah, I hadn't known that you were friends with Penelope."

Derek laughed lightly, his tone fond, "Yeah..our whole group has been together for a while."

"It kind of surprised me...this school is so different from my last one. Almost everyone stuck with people who were similar to themselves." He paused and looked at him, "But you and your friends..you all seem to fit in different cliques." He air-quoted the word 'cliques'.

"Oh, there's definitely cliques here but somehow we all managed to become friends." They moved forward in line, "You think I'm just a stupid jock, don't you?" His tone was joking, but with a hint of seriousness.

Spencer studied him, "I don't know you that well...but no. I don't think that."

Morgan have him a thoughtful look as they walked up to the counter to get their supplies. "And what clique did you technically belong to?"

Reid grabbed orange, black, yellow, and white to start with.

They retreated to their desk, "None." The genius replied honestly.

Morgan looked at him skeptically, "None? Don't take this the wrong way kid, but not even with the 'nerds'?"

Spencer began paint the dark sky in the background of his painting, "I think you have to actually have friends to belong to a clique." He added more black, "So, no..no cliques."

The football player was moderately taken aback, "Well, we'll just have to make our own circle." He smiled at Spencer, "With jocks, drama-geeks, techies, geniuses and everyone else, huh?"

The younger teen considered it, "I guess we will."

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Penelope practically screamed with joy, "You and Haley are finally getting together?"

Hotch gaped at her, "Garcia! Care to say it any louder? I'm not sure people in China heard you!"

Rossi laughed at Aaron's reddening face, glancing at Will, who had told the group about the possible future couple.

"Oh chill, Aaron!" Emily scolded him light-heartedly, "It's not like the whole school didn't know about your crushes on each other already."

"It doesn't mean they need to be informed on my business." He pouted angrily, something Spencer thought he couldn't be capable of.

"So what exactly was it that you caught them doing in the prop closest, Will?" Derek asked mischievously.

"Oh, they were definitely making out." LaMontange grinned at Hotch, and JJ smacked his arm.

"Leave him alone, guys!" The petite blonde reproached them. Spencer smiled at her attempt to ease Aaron's suffering.

"We were just practicing for the play." Aaron's stern voice took over again.

Eyes were rolled and chuckles passed around the group, not one (not even Spencer) believing the obvious lie.

"Could we please talk about someone else?" Aaron asked, both annoyed and desperate.

Penelope nodded.

"Hey Boy Genius, have you changed your mind about the movie on Thursday?" Garcia brought all the attention to the newbie of their team.

"Oh..I um.." He stuttered, "Are you sure you want me to come along?"

"I wouldn't have asked if I didn't want you to come." She said truthfully.

"You should totally come, man." Derek told him and the others nodded.

"Just don't tell me and Will about it, we can't watch it until this weekend." JJ said.

"I'll have to ask my dad, but I don't think he'd mind." He spoke softly.

Penelope clapped, "Awesome!"

As the conversation started to switch, Spencer saw Darius' buddies at a table. One caught his eye, then nudged the other that had been behind the bully. Both looked at him with anger and disgust, before turning back to their friends.

The others had watched the interaction without Spencer's knowledge.

He lowered his face, pushing around the food that Stella had made him, no longer hungry.

"Reid?" Hotchner questioned.

He looked up, eyes brimmed with tears. "Yeah?" He asked, voice cracking.

He felt an arm around his shoulder, belonging to none other than Derek Morgan. "Did those guys mess with you?"

The entire table watched him, all seemingly protective. Something Spencer never thought he'd have directed towards him.

"No." He replied sincerely, "_They _didn't do anything."

"Who did?" Emily asked.

Rossi leaned forward, "Is _this _the thing you're used to?" Thinking back to their English class, knowing no one else would understand the question.

Spencer stayed silent for a minute, then looked towards Prentiss, "It doesn't matter, and my teacher took care of it." He avoided David's gaze.

The bell rang once again, saving Spencer from anymore questions. They said their goodbyes and ventured off to their separate destinations.

Aaron walked him to the library doors, "For the record, it does matter." They eyed each other before he left for his own class.

Spencer walked through the double doors and over to the librarian, Mrs. Cullet, that he'd met the day before.

"Hello, Spencer. Read any good books lately?" She joked, she'd learned yesterday just how much the child read.

He smiled, "Plenty of them."

She pushed a cart towards him, full of books that needed to be returned to their designated spots. "I'm sure you've memorized the layout, think you can handle putting these back?"

He nodded and got to work.

About twenty minutes into the period, a student worker dropped off a pass to the librarian's desk.

"Spencer, you're needed in the office." Mrs. Cullet handed him the paper in exchange for the cart. "You might want to take your things."

With an uneasy stomach, he grabbed his bag and left. The hallways were empty, save for a few hall monitors and straggling students.

He reached the front office and took a spot in the same seat as before, watching Alice. She still wasn't doing any work.

She looked at him, "You can go in and see Mr. Gideon now."

"O-okay, thank you." He walked the same path as he'd done before, knocking shyly on the man's open door.

"Come in, Spencer." Gideon was behind his desk, smiling at the student.

Reid took his seat, waiting for the principal to speak.

"I heard that there was an incident this morning between you and another student?" He asked, for verification.

"Yes sir." He swallowed nervously, **I'm not going to get in trouble for this, am I?**

The principal sensed his worry, "I just need you to tell me what happened. I have other eye-witness accounts that I need to confirm."

He sighed with relief, relaying exactly what happened- down to the last word.

"Wow." Gideon looked at him, "That's impressive..your memory, I mean." Another bell rang, and the principal began to write a pass.

Clearing his throat, Gideon spoke again. "Darius will be attending in-school suspension for the next week, I don't believe he will bother you again after that." He looked at him seriously, "But if he does, you need to tell someone. Okay?"

"Okay. Thank you." Spencer took the late pass gratefully, glad to be able to leave the office.

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He walked into his algebra class five minutes late. After handing the pass to his teacher and picking up a paper, he quickly made his way to his friends.

"Where have _you _ been?" Derek asked, both Aaron and Will waiting for the answer as well.

"I had to talk to Principal Gideon." He said quietly, answering the questions on his worksheet.

"About Darius?" Aaron asked, and Spencer looked up in surprise.

"How did you know that?"

Aaron shrugged, "The guys from lunch are his friends. It seemed logical to me."

Reid nodded, "He's going to in-school suspension for the rest of the week."

"Guys, finish your work _then_ you can talk." Their teacher reprimanded them, and they all faced their respective assignments.

Spencer was somewhat glad, he didn't feel like talking about it anymore.

He watched the clock, waiting for the end of the day.

/

A/N: Which character do you think Spencer thought was more hot? Loki or Thor? Tell me in your review!


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: I love y'all so much! I hope you're liking this story. Constructive criticism is welcome, as are your lovely reviews :)

The movie that they will be seeing doesn't set the time period this story is in (there's no real year this story takes place), I just chose something that is somewhat current but old enough that I can write spoilers for it if need be.

Also, I promise there will be more dramatic things happening, but considering it's been a very short amount of time that he group has known each other, it won't happen yet.

I finished writing chapter 20, just starting 21!

Please read &amp; review!

/

Chapter 10: Allowance And Lonely Nights

Spencer stood in the doorway awkwardly, his father either hadn't noticed his presence or didn't care.

"So..um, my new friends? The ones I mentioned to you the other day.." Spencer started talking to William who was currently working in his home office.

His dad looked up and then back down towards his paperwork, "What about them?"

"They invited me to go see a movie this Thursday. I..was wondering if I could go?" He didn't know why he was so nervous, his father would probably prefer him to be out and about. Being 'normal'.

"Of course. You need money, right?" His voice was bored.

"Yes sir." He did _not_ want to borrow money from his dad but this was his only option, and he really wanted to hang out with his friends.

William pushed his papers aside, motioning for Reid to sit in the chair across from him. "I was going to speak with you about your allowance anyways, so this is a good enough time."

Spencer sat down hesitantly, waiting for his father to speak again.

He pulled out a debit card from his desk drawer, passing it to Spence. "I took the liberty of setting up a bank account under your name."

"Oh. Thank you, I..I don't know how I'll repay you." He stared at his father.

"You don't have to, but I expect you to stay under a budget of 500 dollars per month." He looked back seriously.

The younger Reid's jaw slackened, "Five _hundred_?" He hadn't been expecting any spending money at all, let alone hundreds. "I don't think I could spend that in a year!" He and his mother never had spending money. Everything he made from odd jobs were put to bills and groceries.

William nodded and passed a paper to Spencer with the pin code for his new card. "I'm sure you'll have this memorized with no issues."

"Thank you." He stood up as his father continued to work, "Um, do you want me to bring you a plate of food?"

"I'm fine, but thanks." He sighed and rubbed his scalp, scratching something out on his paper. "Goodnight, Spencer."

"Goodnight." He closed the door on his way out, heading to the kitchen.

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Spencer couldn't sleep. His mind was racing, all of the negative thoughts he'd been pushing to the back of his mind were bombarding him.

He'd been tossing and turning all night and now at 2:13 in the morning, he was fighting the urge to grab the razor Stella had left in the bathroom amongst other personal hygiene items.

He cried silently but violently into his pillow, it felt as though he could no longer breathe. His mind was buzzing like angry little bees.

His forced himself to calm down slightly, so he could make it to the bathroom silently.

Shutting and locking the door quietly, he faced his reflection. _Ugh. _A foreign figure stared back at him through the mirror, full of disappointment.

He picked up the razor, dispensing the blade from its socket. He pulled back his sleeve and stopped. _Dad might check my arms for new cuts.._

He hadn't hurt himself since his attempt, but his mind was reeling and he needed a release. He was on autopilot (As much as his brain would allow) as he lowered his pajama pants and gently cut his thigh. After four small cuts, he dropped the blade on the counter.

Watching the blood dribble down was enough to shake him from his current mindset and into the memory of his attempt.

Shame, misery, _longing _for death... All the things he felt during those moments came rushing back.

He shook his head in disgust, grabbing some toilet paper to clean some of the mess.

_Damn it! _He threw the wadded up paper at the mirror, _I shouldn't have done that...I shouldn't have cut myself!_

He angrily wiped away the tears that betrayed him and turned on the faucet, quickly rinsing the sharp object and returning it to the razor before grabbing a washcloth and cleaning his cuts.

He soaped up the rag as best as he could to get rid of the blood, and flushed the toilet paper down the toilet. _Hopefully Stella won't notice anything._

He avoided the mirror as he turned to leave, not wanting to see the disheveled look he was sure he had.

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He took his time in the shower, the initial stinging from the cuts long gone. He knew if he wanted to have coffee or eat before leaving for school he should have gotten out ten minutes ago, but it was far too relaxing to even consider it.

Eventually the water ran cold, breaking him from his tired, and so wonderfully warm, fog.

He checked the time on his new phone (Which was what he considered his only use for it. He only had four numbers: His father's, The home phone, Stella's number, and Bennington Sanitarium). He needed to get going soon.

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"No sugar, oops! I mean coffee this morning?" Stella asked him playfully, handing him another homemade lunch.

He gave her a small smile, "Unfortunately no, I have to go. Thank you for lunch!"

He checked his pocket for his phone and put his food in his bag before saying goodbye.

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_-cough_\- "Faggot!" -_cough-_ Darius' crony commented to Spencer as he walked through the door of their first period, drawing a few snickers from the others. The teacher wasn't in the room.

He glowered at him before hurrying to his desk. _Great,_ he sighed, _I guess I've found my main bullies here._

The laughing and taunting ceased at Mr. Hufley's arrival. "Alright class, let's get started!"

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Spencer let out a small hiss of pain when his pants rubbed across his fresh wounds while taking his seat.

Emily stared at him worriedly, "You alright, Reid?"

"Oh, yeah, I hit my leg earlier." He lied through his teeth as Penelope sat down next to him.

"Hey Boy Genius!" She blew him a kiss.

He smiled back awkwardly, "Hey..." The girls laughed at his reaction before he continued. "I asked my father and he said I could go to the movies."

"Good, it starts at 6:45 but we're all meeting in the lobby at 6:20. You know where the theatre is?" Emily informed him.

"Yes, I looked it up. So, what is it we're seeing?" He asked curiously, he usually didn't watch movies unless they were Science Fiction or documentaries.

"Tangled!" Penelope said happily, "It's an animation."

"It's a _princess _movie." Emily replied less happily.

"Which one?" He asked, he'd read Grimm's fairy tales once long ago.

"Rapunzel, and Emily cheer up! I hear it's actually supposed to be really good." Garcia pushed her shoulder lightly.

"It better be, otherwise you're refunding me for my ticket." She half-joked.

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Spencer pulled out the chicken stir-fry Stella made him, it smelled absolutely delicious.

"Your momma still pack your lunch?" Will kidded, bringing small smiles to everyone's faces. Well, everyone except Spencer. _He didn't mean it harshly, he doesn't know about mom._

"Ah..n-no. My dad.. His housekeeper, she made it for me.." He was embarrassed of the fact that his dad had workers, it felt so showy. The others just nodded.

He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, signaling a text message, he assumed. He pulled it out, sliding it open to the text.

_Stella: Hola cariño! I'm heading to the grocery store, and forgot to ask you if you needed anything._

Spencer: _Hi. Um, I was actually supposed to pick up my antidepressant medication the day I moved here. They transferred it to the local drug store..I just forgot_.

That was a lie, he just felt too embarrassed to ask for them and his father didn't seen to care that he needed them...but he knew he needed them, so at least he was doing it now.

Stella: _Alrighty, anything else?_

Spencer: _That's it. Thank you, Stella._

"Spencer Reid!" Penelope scolded him, causing him to look up in confusion.

"Wha-?" He didn't understand why she was upset.

"You have a cellphone and didn't give me your number?" She pouted expertly, causing the others to grin.

He looked down at it, and back up. "Uh.. I didn't think you'd want it." She rolled her eyes, "But, um, I suppose we should all exchange numbers just incase anything about our movie plans change."

Derek smiled at him and grabbed for his phone, his hand lingering for a second before pulling away.

"H-hey!" His heart skipped a beat at the touch, but recovered quickly, trying to take it back only to have Derek swat at him.

Morgan looked questioningly at the screen before exiting and switching to the address book.

"Relax Pretty Boy, I'm texting my number so I can save yours." He finished and handed it back.

Reid tried to ignore the feeling the nickname gave him as he responded, "Thank you."

The rest of the group told him their numbers.

"Did you know that the UK holds the honor as the official birthplace of texting? On December 3, 1992 Neil Papworth, a 22-year-old software programmer from Reading, sent the very first message when he wished his friend Richard Jarvis of Vodafone: "Merry Christmas".

At the time mobile phones didn't have keyboards so it was sent via personal computer..but it still qualifies as a text." He added as he entered their numbers and sent a group-message (That's what Aaron said it was called, at least).

Murmurs of "I didn't know that." And "_Why_ would I know that?" Surrounded Reid, and he blushed.

"Sorry..I thought it was interesting." He put his phone back in his pocket.

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"Aaron, are you coming to the game on Friday with everyone else?" Derek asked the mature teen.

"Yeah..I'm going to meet Haley afterwards so I can't stay long." He said sheepishly, Reid smiled to himself. It was somewhat satisfying to see the guy get flustered.

"Alright, man!" Derek grinned, and Will waggled his eyebrows.

"Yeah yeah, we're not even dating." He replied sadly, though his excited face betrayed his lie.

"Uh huh, sure Hotch." Will replied disbelievingly. "That's like Pen saying she isn't dating Kevin."

Derek laughed before catching Reid's eye. He blushed.

"What about you, Reid?" The handsome football player asked.

"I've never watched football before." He answered honestly, ignoring the looks of disbelief.

"That doesn't really surprise me." Derek laughed, "Want to watch one?"

Despite the fear that he associated with football fields, he couldn't help the smile on his face, "Uh, sure. What time is it on Friday?" He turned to Aaron, "And can I sit with you all?"

"Of course you can sit with us." Will said in a _duh!_ tone.

"It starts at five. They sit near the field, so they can get a great view of me kicking ass." He winked at Reid.

"Don't go getting an ego, Morgan." Will said, feigning annoyance.

The bell rang, and Spencer smiled to himself. "See you tomorrow."

Derek waved, Aaron nodded and said goodbye politely, and Will patted his shoulder on the way out.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Thanks for stopping in! Enjoy the chapter and please continue to review :) Thank you for the favs, reviews, and follows, getting them makes my day! Also, I almost have 100 followers, which is AWESOME.

I keep having to stop myself from writing "y'all" because I forget they're not in Texas like me!

/

Chapter 11: Let's All Go To The Movies

_Today is the day! _Thought Spencer, _The first day I'll ever be hanging out with friends! _ He couldn't wait to tell his mom.

The teenager was astronomically excited, he just hoped everything would go well tonight.

He walked into the kitchen, greeting Stella, which was obviously going to become his routine. He was dressed for school, so eager and nervous about going to the movies that he woke up an hour early.

"Good morning! How are you?" He said happily, grinning at the older woman.

"Hey kiddo, do you actually want some breakfast this morning?" The housekeeper smiled at him from the stove where she was currently making an omelet. She nodded toward the egg concoction, "This one is for your father but I'll gladly make you one."

"Um..could you make scrambled eggs?" There was no use saying he could make it himself, she would only insist otherwise.

"Sure thing." She slid the omelet onto a light green plate, putting a fork beside it as William walked into the room.

"Good morning, Mrs. Gualardi." Mr. Reid said, not noticing his son in the kitchen.

"Morning."- "Morning!" Spencer and Stella responded in unison, causing the woman to laugh.

William turned his head towards the other male voice, "Oh, you're up early." His response was flat.

Reid nodded uncomfortably, turning to watch Stella making his eggs. He stood up to put some bread in the toaster.

"Uh, do you want toast d-dad?" He asked quietly, Stella noticing his change in mood.

"Actually yes." He pulled out his newspaper, "Thank you." He began to eat his breakfast, taking a sip of the orange juice his employee put out for him.

After two pieces popped up, he quickly buttered them and handed them to his father, neither looking at each other.

Spencer stuck close (Well, as close as he gets to people) to Stella, not really wanting or knowing how to make conversation with his father.

The Hispanic woman handed him his plate of eggs, snatching his toast for him and fixing everything up. He smiled his thanks and she pushed him towards the table.

"You two have a good morning." She smiled at Spencer pointedly before exiting the room, hoping her plan to get the two to talk would work.

It didn't.

She'd walked by the kitchen three separate times before Mr. Reid left, it was quiet each time. She sighed as William walked towards his car.

Reid watched her close the door and turn to him, "Have you talked to your dad at all since you've moved here?"

He looked at his shoes, "We've talked a little bit." His eyes met hers again, "We..just don't have anything to talk about."

"I'm sure you could find something, you're his son!" Stella exclaimed.

_Hardly._ He thought, glancing at the clock. "I should get going."

She turned towards the wall clock as well, nodding in agreement. "Have a good day, Spencer."

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"Your Jack-O-Lantern is looking pretty good." Derek commented, leaning towards the younger teen who was currently painting.

He looked at Morgan, smiling, "Thanks. Yours looks great, you're really good with the small details."

Derek gave him a crooked smile, mumbling another thank you. "My mom used to paint a lot, so I sort of picked it up."

Spencer put down his brush, more interested in talking to his friend than the project. He found that he was slightly more comfortable (Well, for the most part) talking to Derek when they were alone. When they were in the group, it felt like everyone was watching them.

"She doesn't paint much anymore?" He asked.

Morgan frowned for a second before turning to a neutral look, "Not since my dad died...she's too busy working or taking care of me and my sisters."

Reid felt a small pang of guilt for bring up the subject, "I'm so sorry, Derek. I-I didn't mean to br-"

The mocha-skinned teen threw a tiny smile at him, "You don't have to be sorry, It was a long time ago. You didn't know."

Without thinking, Spencer patted Morgan's arm briefly in reassurance. Spencer rarely voluntarily touched another person. He smiled at his friend, fighting to keep his blush down and picked his paintbrush up once more.

He could feel Morgan watching him for a second before grabbing his own paintbrush again. "Did you pick anything up from your dad? Any superpowers I should know about?" He joked.

Spencer gave a short, quiet laugh causing Derek to give him a confused look.

"No, I doubt I have anything in common with my father..." He said shaking his head, "My mom though, I got pretty much everything from her..the love of literature, my IQ, just...everything."

"Ten minutes till class ends! Clean up your messes please." Mrs. Varahl interrupted.

They picked up their things, walking side by side. "So, she's a super genius like you?" Derek laughed.

He grabbed Morgan's paintbrushes and rinsed them along with his own, "You could say that."

They grabbed their canvases to bring to the drying rack, "..If you believed in classifying intelligence, which-"

"You don't." Derek laughed again, finishing the sentence that he'd heard before.

His cheeks turned pink, but he couldn't help but laugh. Sitting back down in their chairs, they waited for the last 3 minutes of class to end.

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Spencer was nervous as he looked through his closet, he figured most people changed out of their school clothes and into different ones before going out.

Stella knocked on his door. He called out, "Come in!"

"Hola." She said, walking into the room before finding him. "You still haven't decided?" She smiled sympathetically at him.

"No..what do people wear when they hang out with their friends?" His voice was timid, but his knowledge just didn't reach the social part of life and he needed help.

"What you're wearing now is just fine, but if you're dead-set on changing I suggest something purple. It would match your skin tone, I think."

"Thank you, Stella." He said, taking a long sleeve purple button up off of a hanger.

"No problem, did you take your medication this morning?"

"Yes ma'am." He looked away, "Thank you for picking it up."

She started to leave, "It's nothing to be ashamed of, Spencer. And don't call me ma'am, it makes me feel old!" She laughed at the latter part of her sentence.

He nodded as she closed the door even though she couldn't see him anymore, smirking.

He changed shirts, opting to keep his black jeans and his vans on.

He checked his cuts on his legs to make sure they were doing okay before inspecting his wrists for probably the fiftieth time that day. He was still getting used to wearing long sleeves, and his wrists constantly itched.

The scars were deep, and he knew that they probably wouldn't fade. He wondered if he should just stop caring if everybody saw them, but he quickly shut off that idea.

He heard his phone go off, a text from JJ.

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JJ:_ Hey, have fun at the movies tonight! Will and I wish we could be there._

He smiled, JJ was so nice, she'd actually texted him yesterday as well, picking a conversation back up from lunch.

Spencer: _Thank you. You guys have fun at your great-aunt's..you know, if that's possible_.

He grabbed his wallet with his new debit card in it, and walked out of his bedroom door.

JJ: _Lol thanks. See you tomorrow._

He left it at that, sliding the phone into his pocket as he jogged down the stairs. It was 5:55, and though he calculated that it would only take 17.5 minutes to get to the theatre, he wanted to make sure he wasn't late.

"I'm going to leave, Stella." He poked his head into Mr. Reid's office where she was dusting.

She paused her work, "Have fun! If you need anything, call me. And are you sure you don't want a ride?"

He shook his head, "It's fine, that's not your job. See you later!"

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He sat on one of the benches within the theatre, watching the various movie-goers as he waited for someone to show up.

Prentiss arrived first, spotting him and waving. He stood, going to meet her.

"Hey, Reid."

"Hi, Emily." They walked back to where he was seated.

"The others should be here in a few minutes, we're all surprisingly punctual." She said, keeping an eye on the doors.

A few minutes passed, and sure enough the rest of the group arrived. Derek and Penelope second, Dave and Aaron last.

"Nice shirt, Spencer." Derek said as he walked up to him, away from the group.

"T-thanks, you look nice too." He smiled.

"Let's go get our tickets so we can get good seats." Dave called out, pulling the group towards the booths.

After buying their admission and snacks, they headed to Theatre 12.

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Penelope bursted through the doors of the lobby, twirling. "_I can finally see the light, and it's like the fog has lifted!"_ She sang loudly, effectively drawing attention to them.

"Garcia." Aaron said, "People are staring."

"Let them!" She stuck her tongue out and he cracked a smile. "So, how did everyone like the movie?" She asked, calming down and locking her arms with Derek.

Everyone started speaking.

"I think it was good." Derek said, earning a pleased smile from Garcia.

"Typical Disney film, but the songs are catchy." Emily added.

Aaron shrugged his shoulders, "It was good, but next time we should see an action movie."

Dave said "Did Gothel remind anyone of Ms. Strauss?" Earning a collective groan from the group.

"The animation and story were both good, but it varies greatly from the original tale of Rapunzel..In the Grimm version, Rapunzel is taken because her father was stealing fruit from their garden and he had to give her his first-born daughter so she wouldn't kill him." Spencer said, "And then-"

"How often do you read fairy tales?" Emily interjected.

"I read the Grimm versions when I was younger." He said quietly, now aware that he'd been rambling again.

They were all standing by a bench watching him slowly crawl back into his shell. "Sorry." He stated.

"Hey, kid." Derek said softly.

"Yeah?"

"We weren't meaning to cut you off like that. We think you're pretty interesting."

"Yeah, don't let us scare you off. We just joke a lot." Emily said.

He looked around at his friends, _My friends._ He reminded himself.

"I'm...just used to people getting mad at me for knowing a lot. When I realize I'm talking too much, I.. I just don't want to make anybody mad."

That was the most he'd ever spoke of feeling outcasted, and he'd surprised himself for doing so.

Penelope piped up, "Oh Honey, I don't think we could ever get mad at you for that."

Aaron, Derek, and Emily nodded in agreement.

Rossi joked, "Maybe a little annoyed." He winked and softly punched Reid's arm.

Spencer smiled, "Um.. Thank you guys. I had a really fun time tonight!"

"Same here, I need to get going though." Aaron said after looking at his phone, fishing his keys out of his pocket.

"He's my ride, I'll see you guys tomorrow." Dave waved and followed Hotch.

"Em, you want to walk out with me? I parked next to you." Garcia asked before hugging Spencer tightly.

Reid gasped and instinctually pulled away, apologizing immediately afterwards. Derek grinned at Prentiss, who was cracking up.

She laughed looking towards Morgan, "Goodnight my lovelies."

The girls walked out, leaving Derek and Spencer in the lobby.

"I'll wait with you till your ride comes, if you want." Morgan said, looking at the equally tall boy.

"Oh, it's okay. I'm walking home." He smiled at him, "But thank you."

"No way, kid. You haven't lived here that long, you don't know these streets that well." At Spencer's look he added, "What if some serial killer decides you're his next victim? _I'll_ take you home."

"The chances of that happening a-" Spencer was cut off.

"Are too high for me to risk. Come on!" He grabbed him by the arm, just above his wounds.

Spencer allowed himself to be pulled to the doors where Derek dropped his arm. "You really don't have to do this."

Morgan kept walking, Reid in tow, until stopping at a large gray truck. "I know I don't _have_ to."

He unlocked the doors, "Climb on in."

He did as he was told, honestly grateful for the ride. "Thank you."

Derek started the truck, "It's no biggie. Just tell me how to get there."

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They pulled into Spencer's driveway a short time later, their conversation stopping when Derek laid eyes on the house before him.

"Holy crap." His eyes widened and Spencer smirked.

"That was my reaction too. Willia-My father, he has so many spare rooms, I don't even see the point of them being there."

He nodded, coming to a stop near the door, "You're not very close with him, are you?"

"No, not really. Um..I'd invite you in but it's late and I don't really know his rules for that..or if he's working or.." He started off nervously.

"It's alright, my mom will kill me if I don't get home soon anyways." He replied, smiling.

"Thank you, again. I really appreciate it." He put his hand on the door latch but stopped at Morgan's voice.

"Do you walk to and from school as well?" He asked.

"Yes, I don't know how to drive..I don't really have much interest in it actually." He settled back into his seat, facing his friend.

"Well how 'bout you ride with me?" As Reid started protesting he interrupted, "It's on my way anyways."

Spencer relented, "That would be great. What time will you be here?"

Derek grinned, he always won arguments. "7:00 AM, think you can manage that?"

Spencer nodded, "That's perfect, thank you!"

"The only thing is, every Wednesday for the next month I have football practice after school. You can wait if you want, but it lasts till 6."

"One day a week isn't bad for walking. I really, really appreciate it."

Derek smiled, "No problem, I should probably go. See you tomorrow!"

He waved once he reached the door, going in to greet his dad.

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Spencer was lying in bed when a text came in.

Derek: _Goodnight, Pretty Boy._

Reid smiled, quickly replying before going to sleep.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Woo! Welcome back! I know some of you were probably expecting something to happen between Derek and Spencer, but it won't happen quite yet. (I already have that part planned out) At least there was a tiny bit of fluff!

I hope you enjoy this chapter!

PLEASE read and review!

/

Chapter 12: Of Football Games And Conversations

Reid was bouncing his leg nervously as he sat on the barstool within the kitchen, waiting for Derek to come pick him up for school.

Last night in the car had been surprisingly comfortable with an easy conversation between the two.

He wondered if Morgan was a morning person, or if he was the epitome of a zombie.

It was 6:57 when he heard the doorbell ring. Stella beat him to the door.

"Hello! Are you Derek? I'm Stella." Mrs. Gualardi asked kindly, Reid coming up behind her.

"Yes ma'am, it's nice to meet you." He shook her hand, before looking at Spencer.

"Hey Spence." He said warmly.

"Hey Derek." He smiled back as Stella handed him his bag.

"Have a good day at school you two, drive safe!" She said, ushering them out of the still open door.

"You too."

"Goodbye Stella."

Derek unlocked his truck and slipped in, turning it back on and waiting for Reid.

Spencer placed his bag on the floor underneath the dashboard before buckling his seatbelt.

They backed out of the long driveway in silence.

"Hey Der, do you want me to turn on the radio?" He asked, unsure if he liked listening to the radio in the morning.

Morgan smirked, "Der?"

Reid's eyes widened, "Oh! I'm sorry! I didn't realize I'd called you that."

Derek laughed, "Nah, I like it." Spence smiled and Morgan added, "You can turn on the radio if you want. I usually don't."

Reid shook his head, "Me either."

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They pulled into the school parking lot, near where the math, science and extracurricular classes were held. Derek explained that he liked to park wherever his last class would be, which worked out well for Spencer.

Walking through the side doors into the stairwell, they parted ways. Forensics was on the third floor and Derek had to walk to the other side of the school for English.

Spencer walked into his class, and was one of the first people there. The other two were a couple of girls who had made fun of him on his first day of class. Now, however, they completely ignored him. Probably because their only audience was the teacher.

"Good morning, Mr. Hufely." He said, sitting down.

"Hello, Spencer. You ready to finish the video on how to dissect piglets?"

The young teen's face curled into one of disgust, "I don't think I'll ever be ready for that."

The teacher chuckled as more students poured in, the tardy bell getting close.

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Spencer had just walked out of his first period, ready to go see Prentiss and Garcia, but he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder.

He turned to see Darius' friends, Mark and Jadon, sneering at him. He took a deep breath.

"What do you want?" He asked, trying not to let the fear show.

"We saw you ridin' with Derek Morgan." Jadon said angrily, "If you think he can protect you from us, you're wrong."

Mark let him go, and they walked away. Spencer stood in his place for a second, surprised they hadn't hurt him then and there.

He shook his head and walked towards the other end of the school and down to the first floor.

He greeted his teacher before going to his friends.

"Hey guys."

"Hey, you ready for the test?" Emily asked, before correcting herself, "Oh wait, of course you are!"

Penelope and Spencer laughed, quieting down when the teacher started to pass out their exam.

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"So then when she was blowing out the candles, her dentures flew out of her mouth and into the cake!" Will said with an laugh.

JJ shook her head, "It was really gross."

"I bet Will still ate it." Rossi taunted, causing Aaron to nod in agreement.

Derek turned to Spencer, "Will has a tendency to eat everything and anything put in front of him."

"He once ate a chocolate bar covered in ants!" Garcia said half-disgusted, half-impressed.

"Hey, chocolate-covered ants are a delicacy!" Will retorted.

"Yeah, maybe when they're _dead. _But it can't be good for you when they're alive!" JJ told him, poking him in the side.

"Actually, lots of insects are full of protein. Red Ants, for example, have 13.9 grams of protein and have less fat than, say, high-protein fish like salmon." Reid informed the skinny blonde.

"Ha! See? It's not bad for me..you guys need to expand your food palette." Will defended himself, reaching across the table to give Reid a high-five. He had to pick up Spencer's hand (much to the smart teen's dismay) and complete the action for him- Reid didn't know what he was doing. The others laughed at the scene before them.

"Y'all wouldn't last long in Louisiana." He added.

Spencer spoke quietly to Derek as the rest of the group continued with the food debate, "Do you go home before the game, or do you stay here until five?"

"I usually stay just so I can relax on the field and toss the ball around a little bit before coach gives us a speech. Do you want me to drop you off at home or do you want to hang around with me?"

Spencer smiled a little bit, "I can stay, I just need to tell Stella."

Derek grinned, "Awesome, tell her I said hello."

"I will." He said as he pulled out his phone, texting the housekeeper.

"..Well?" Penelope said, staring at Morgan and Reid.

"Well what?" Derek asked, he'd missed the conversation. Spencer looked up as well, all eyes were on them.

"Would you eat a live tarantula if you were given a million dollars?" JJ said, squishing up her face at the thought.

"No. Unless it was a life or death situation." Reid said seriously, he would never eat a spider unless it was absolutely necessary.

"I think I would try." Derek said confidently, before deflating a bit, "But I might chicken out if it was actually near my mouth."

"Can you imagine if it crawled back up your throat?" Emily asked, Aaron shivering at the thought.

"Okay. I'm no longer hungry." Dave said, standing up to toss out his lunch.

Prentiss grinned evilly at Rossi as Garcia stood up. "I'm with you on that one, Rossi."

.

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.

Reid watched as Derek tossed the ball back and forth with another player, they'd been doing so for about five minutes.

His fear was present within himself, but he tried to ignore it. _Derek won't hurt you like they did._

Morgan caught the ball, nodding to his friend who was walking off the field.

"Hey, Reid. Want to toss the ball around?" He watched him expectantly.

He pointed towards himself, "Um..I'm not very athletically inclined."

He heard Derek laugh, "I'm sure you'll be fine, Pretty Boy! Come on." He pouted his lips and gave his best puppy dog eyes to Spence.

"..Okay. Just..don't laugh at me because I'm horrible." He stepped towards the athlete.

"I promise. Now back up a little bit."

Spencer walked backwards.

"Little more!"

"Good?" Reid asked, he seemed so far away. There was no way he could throw that far, let alone _catch_ the ball.

"Perfect." Derek positioned himself and warned Reid. "Ready?"

Spencer nodded, gulping.

Derek threw it, and the younger teen held his arms out with his eyes closed.

The ball flew passed him and Reid opened his eyes, "Uh, I guess I missed it."

Derek shook his head, a smile tugging at his lips.

They practiced throwing until he was called away by his coach.

"It's 4:30, the gang should be here real soon. Just wait over there." Derek said, pointing to the bottom of the stands near a wheelchair ramp.

"Okay, good luck, Der." He smiled at him before walking to his waiting area.

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.

"WOOOOOOO!" Penelope screamed happily, "THAT'S MY MAN!"

Spencer lifted his eyebrows before turning to Aaron, who also seemed overjoyed..in his own way.

More cheers could be heard, and since his friends stood, he did too.

Clapping and hollering along with the rest of them, Spencer actually felt himself enjoying the game. Sure, he didn't really understand what was going on, but it was fun knowing Derek was winning the game. He pushed away his own memories of football fields, not wanting to spoil his mood.

His sleeves were slipping a bit so he resorted to just whoop-ing and yelling, hoping his scars hadn't shown.

The game was nearly over, and Derek was right..he was kicking ass. Their team was up by 23 points, and it seemed the other team was just getting worse and worse.

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.

As the stadium cleared, the group of 7 ran onto the grass to congratulate Derek on his win.

"Baby! You were _so _amazing!" Garcia cried, hugging the sweaty player.

"Thanks, sweets." He laughed.

Aaron patted him on the back, Rossi giving a thumbs-up.

"I knew we'd win." Emily said proudly, not that she particularly cared about sports.

JJ handed him a water from her purse, "There ya go, champ." He smirked, gratefully accepting the water.

"Thanks guys. I need to go shower."

Will nodded in agreement before laughing, "Hell yeah you do!"

"Ha ha." Morgan replied blandly, then looking towards Reid. "You'll have to wait in the locker room for me."

The group filtered out, saying their goodbyes. Only Reid, Garcia, and Morgan remained.

At the panicked look on his face he spoke again, "Or in the hallway."

Spencer relaxed visibly, "Okay."

"That's nice of you to give him a _ride."_ Penelope said with a look that Reid didn't understand, but knew was full of meaning.

"What can I say? I'm a nice guy."

She smirked, "Bye guys." She waved as she walked away, "See you Monday, Boy Genius!"

He waved back. Derek rolled his eyes in her direction.

"What was that about?" Spencer asked.

"Nothing, she just likes to mess with me." His answer was dismissive, "Come on, kid. I really _do_ need to shower."

Spencer left it alone, figuring it was better not to try and figure out Derek and Penelope's weird relationship.

He caught up to Derek, complimenting him on his win since he hadn't earlier.

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Spencer rested his head on his pillow, reflecting over his first week of the new school.

It had been nothing like he'd expected (Well, other than the bullying), and he found himself wishing that there was school tomorrow.

He didn't want to be alone with his father on Sunday, but at least now he had people to text.

He planned to stay out of his dad's way, regardless of Stella's thoughts that they needed to talk.

He sighed contently, pulling the covers close and dozing off.

/

A/N: I've considered writing the story from Derek's perspective after finishing the story through Spencer's..not sure if I will, what do y'all think?


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Thank you for reading! I'm so excited that the first week is over (Though I've loved writing it) , so I can move things forward a bit!

This chapter takes place from Monday through Thursday of the second week (It's random conversations/scenes).

EDIT: I forgot to mention this in the first place but a 'snippet' chapter like this probably won't happen again, i like writing day-by-day chapters but feared that you readers would become bored with the syle. Don't worry, i believe the next chapter will be _very _interesting to y'all. Thanks to Bommiej's review for reminding me!

Please read and REVIEW! It makes my day.

/

Chapter 13: The Second Week

The weekend had went fairly well, a few of his friends had texted him.

He'd talked to Aaron about improving his skills on memorizing lines, and he talked to Garcia about Star Trek and other SciFi shows.

He'd texted Derek the most, though. The conversation didn't stick to one topic, it flowed from random thought to random thought. They'd stayed up till nearly 2 AM on Sunday, before Derek finally collapsed from exhaustion.

When Spencer opened the door to Morgan on Monday morning, and the half-black teen quickly apologized for falling asleep on him.

Spencer had grinned, saying, "It's okay. You ready to go?"

"Yeah." Derek grinned back, saying goodbye to Mrs. Gualardi.

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Darius had come back to class on Tuesday, and when Spencer walked through the door he nearly froze on the spot.

They glared at him as he made his way to his chair, and he could feel the dread settling in his stomach.

He closed his eyes, breathing deeply, silently begging for the teacher to come back in the room.

He heard hands slam onto his desk. He slowly opened his eyes back up, seeing Darius before him.

"Thanks for getting me sent to in-school suspension, asshole." He gritted his teeth, "You're gonna pay for that."

Reid felt his hands began to shake, "It wasn't my fault." He whispered.

"Shut up!" He brought his face close to Reid's, "Nobody gives a shit about you or whatever you have to say."

Spencer looked away, tears stinging his eyes. The teacher walked in, slamming the door.

Everyone looked up. "DARIUS! Making trouble on your first day back? Go sit down." Mr. Hufely said sternly.

Darius walked back to his seat, discreetly flipping Spencer off.

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Prentiss shook her head, laughing at Rossi's joke. "That's gross!"

Dave grinned cheekily, and Aaron tried his best not to laugh along. Derek made a face, but couldn't help laughing as well.

Spencer, however, looked pale.

"You alright there, Reid?" JJ asked.

"That..joke." He shuddered, looking down at his roast beef sandwich, "I don't think I can finish this."

His friends laughed, and Penelope added an _Ew! _as she looked at his food, "David! Why did you have to say that?"

Rossi smiled, proud of the fact that he'd made them queasy.

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Reid walked along the sidewalk, anxious to get home and write to his mom.

He still wasn't allowed to call her because she had to "adjust to the facility" for one month before any contact from family.

That also meant that they were keeping his letters until then as well, but he still wrote her every day.

He hoped she was doing well, she never liked doctors or hospitals. Especially not when she was going through an episode. She didn't like _anything _when she was like that, not even Spencer.

He readjusted his bag, trying to clear his mind from the negative thoughts. He'd cut himself once more since those last four on his thigh, but now he was trying to stop completely.

His father hadn't brought up seeing a therapist again, for which he was grateful.

There was a part of him that feared being examined by a doctor, and though he knew it was illogical, Schizophrenia usually didn't start to show signs until you were in your 20's, but he didn't want to end up like his mother: crazy and locked up in a hospital.

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"Hey, do you mind if we swing back by my house? I forgot my Spanish binder and it's got my review in it." Derek asked, glancing back and forth between Spencer and the wheel.

It was Wednesday morning as the two drove through the dark and rainy town.

"Of course not! You have a test today, you'll definitely need it." Spencer replied.

"And don't worry, we won't be late." Derek said reassuringly.

Reid waved his hand, "I wouldn't even mind it, honestly."

Morgan quirked an eyebrow, "Why's that?"

He fiddled with his hands in his lap, "Darius is back. He and his friends always say something to me before the teacher comes in."

Morgan gripped the wheel, "You want me to _talk _to them?"

Reid shook his head wildly, "No! No, that'll just make things worse. Trust me, I know."

Derek pulled into a neighborhood, which Spencer guessed was his own.

"You know if you ever need to talk, or if you need help..just tell me." He said seriously, quietly. "I don't like those guys messing with you."

Reid smiled slightly, "Thank you, I will."

Derek pulled into his driveway, revealing an older home with a wraparound porch.

"Wow, your house is beautiful." Spence said leaning forward to get a better look.

Derek chuckled softly, stuck in a memory. "Thanks. I helped my dad work on it."

He put the truck in park, telling Spencer he'd be right back.

"I don't want you getting your hair wet." He winked before exiting the vehicle.

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"And I'll have the strawberry milkshake please." Penelope said sweetly to the waitress at 'Chrissy's Diner', a local favorite.

"Coming right up, kiddos." She said, the giving the ticket to the cook behind the counter and greeting another customer.

"I'm not a child." Aaron mumbled.

"I know how you feel." Spencer said, "I get called that all the time."

"Yeah, but, to us..you kind of are." JJ said.

He threw her a glare that couldn't scare a kitten, "I'm only one year younger than you! And only two years behind Aaron and Dave!"

Derek patted his shoulder, "At least you're more mature than us." He glanced at Aaron, "Well, _most _of us."

Reid laughed, eying Hotch's reaction.

The waitress slowly brought back everyone's orders, having to make multiple trips because of the big group.

Prentiss looked at Spencer's food with slight repulsion: A chocolate brownie with ice cream, hot fudge, caramel and whipped cream topping it off.

"Geez, I heard about how much sugar you put in your coffee, but I think this is a whole new level of sweet-tooth." Garcia said playfully.

"Who told you that?" He questioned.

Derek grinned as she pointed at him, "He said on Monday you poured half the bag of sugar into your coffee, and that your housekeeper said she had to buy four bags more than she used to."

He slapped Derek on the chest, "She didn't say that!"

"Oh yes she did! You were just too involved in your coffee to hear her." He replied as the rest of the group laughed.

"And speaking of that, why has Derek been invited into your house while none of us have even seen it?" Penelope said, mocking offense.

"He takes me to and from school, you know that." He replied.

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Aaron and Spencer were walking towards the library after lunch, still laughing about Garcia's meltdown when she was told she couldn't wear high heels taller than 7 inches to school.

"She'll find a way around it, I'm sure. There are loopholes in every rule book if you look close enough." Aaron commented.

"She could just hack in and change it online. The first day she met me, she already knew who I was." Spencer said, "She kind of terrified me."

Hotch laughed, "I think she scares everyone with that. Bye Spencer."

Reid waved and opened the door.

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On Thursdays his History teacher allowed the students to talk and review for tests, though most students chose the first option.

"So, now that you've been here a while..how are you liking this place?" Emily asked, adding "I hated it when I first moved here."

"I thought I was going to hate it, and there _are_ some things I don't like, but it's been pretty great." He replied honestly.

"We're glad you're here. You complete our group." Penelope responded.

"I never had friends until I met you guys." He admitted, "I didn't think I ever would."

Prentiss looked at him sympathetically, "Well, it's a good thing you moved here."

"Yeah." He smiled at them, but felt a pinch of guilt because of the reason he was here. His mood spiraling down slowly.

_Dad isn't glad I moved here. _He thought, tuning out his friends without trying.

He shook his head, _My friends are happy I'm here, that's good enough._

"Reid?"

"Oh, sorry! I was just thinking about something." He smiled at them, forcing himself to be happy. And it was working.

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"How is school going?" Mr. Reid asked from the love seat next to the couch.

Spencer looked away from the documentary they were watching, speaking honestly, "It's been really, really good."

The elder Reid smiled slightly, "Good. I was a little worried, but Mrs. Gualardi says you're friends with a football player!"

Ah, so that's why his dad was acting interested. _He probably thinks that I'll want to try out._

Spence nodded, "He was one of the people I went to the movies with last week. And we saw him play on Friday."

"That's great!" His father commented, leaving Spencer a little uncomfortable with how excited he was.

"Are you interested in joining any teams?" He asked.

_There it is..._ He sighed, "..No. I'm not a sports person."

William nodded, unsure of what else to talk about, but knowing he had to at least try and speak to the kid living in his home..**his** kid.

"So, uh..how was the movie? What did you see?" He asked, feigning curiosity.

"_Tangled. _It was okay but it was different from the original story of Rapunzel." He glanced between the TV and his dad.

"Ah.." He turned back to the documentary.

/

A/N: So, there were the short snippets for Monday through Thursday! Tell me what you think and what you'd like to see!


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Hey everyone! I'm super excited about this chapter, so please please let me know what you think!

Please read and review!

/

Chapter 14: Lunchtime Confessional

They group was at lunch, talking about how excited some of them were to turn 18, even though none of their birthdays were close.

"So when is your birthday, Spence?" JJ asked.

Reid looked around, he hadn't been contributing much to the conversation because of his history with birthdays. "Um..it was on the 7th."

Garcia gasped, "What? We just barely missed your birthday, we have to throw you a party!"

Will grinned at her, she _loved_ to throw parties. Prentiss laughed.

Spencer shook his head, "No, no thank you. You don't have to do that."

Derek looked at him strangely, but didn't comment.

"Oh, but it'll be fun!" She promised.

He forced a smile in her direction, "Really, it's not worth the trouble. Thanks anyways."

"It's really no trouble, we're you're friends!" Penelope gushed.

"I'm fine. I don't want a party, Garcia. I don't celebrate my birthday." His tone was clipped but she took no notice.

He was starting to get annoyed now, everyone was smiling at her attempts to be nice but he was just getting more and more upset thinking about it.

"Oh, come on! Who in their right mind doesn't celebrate their birthday?" She cried out, exasperated.

_"I DON'T!" _He snapped and stormed off, leaving the group speechless.

They never expected a reaction like that from Spencer. A few kids from other tables turned to stare before ultimately going back to their own conversations.

"Oh god, I didn't mean to push him! I didn't think he'd get mad.." Garcia started, feeling guilty. "I'm going to go after him and apologize, I think he went to the bathroom."

She started to stand, but Derek got up first. "I'll go talk to him, Pen."

She nodded sadly and watched Morgan walk away.

"What the hell was that?" Emily said, worry lines appearing on her forehead.

"I didn't think he'd even be capable of raising his voice that loud...he's so quiet." JJ added worriedly, looking after him.

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Derek opened the bathroom door quietly, turning around the corner to see if Reid was in there.

He was.

Spencer had an arm planted on either side of the mirror, his eyes closed with tears falling out of them.

His sleeves had slipped down, exposing his still healing scars. Derek stared at him, unable to speak at the sight of how broken he looked.

Spencer sighed heavily and opened his eyes, catching Derek's reflection in the mirror.

"I know I need to go back and apologize, I shouldn't have yelled at her like that...I just don't have many good memories associated with birthdays and I just..." His voice shook.

Derek dismissed the comment, walking towards the younger teen.

"What happened to your wrists?" His tone was nearly inaudible.

Reid looked up in surprise, mentally cursing himself. "Birthdays have never been very good days for me.." He willed him to understand without him having to outright say it.

"Spencer?" Derek's voice was urgent and full of concern as he stepped closer to him.

Reid took his hands away from the wall, hugging himself. He looked at Morgan desperately.

Morgan stared right back, "Please? Talk to me."

Spencer sighed. He wracked his brain for an excuse, but just when he needed it most, it failed him. He looked passed Derek, unable to look into his eyes.

"I..tried to kill myself..on my birthday...the week before I moved here." He confessed, more tears falling.

Derek's eyebrows pushed together, his mouth forming a small "O". He put his hand on Reid's shoulder before bringing him into a hug.

Spencer felt himself melt into the hug, the mental exhaustion taking it's toll. "I'm sorry.."

Morgan pulled back slightly, calling him. "Reid, look at me."

His eyes stayed shut, "It's not an excuse for me to yell at people.."

"Spencer!"

No response, he couldn't bring himself to look at him. He knew he'd see the look that bullies and his father gave him: disappointed disgust.

"Pretty Boy? Please look at me." He tried once more.

His voice was so sincere that Reid couldn't help but look at him.

"You're right, you probably shouldn't have yelled at Penelope..but honestly? If I was dealing with something like that, I would have too...but why, why did you do it, Spence?"

Reid shook his head and leaned back against the wall, willing himself to be anywhere but here.

"Talk to me." Morgan said calmly, watching the younger boy trying not to cry.

Spencer slid down to the floor, Derek joining him. He stayed silent for a minute.

"I..I stopped celebrating my birthday the day my dad left me and my mom."

Derek watched him, his eyes encouraging.

"He left on my 9th birthday. He..he couldn't handle my mom anymore. Or me." He took a gulp of air.

"My mom..she's..she's a paranoid schizophrenic." He paused, gauging Derek's face for a reaction. "And I was never good enough for him, he didn't want a _smart _kid..he wanted a normal one."

"No one is normal, Spencer." Derek added quietly, waiting to hear more.

Reid shook his head, throwing a sad smile at the other teen. He choked on his words as he spoke, "He left us with no money and unpaid bills. My mom had some saved up, but I had to do odd jobs just so we could eat..and to pay for my mom's medication."

Derek squeezed Spencer's hand reassuringly, telling him to continue.

Reid felt a slight weight lifting off his shoulders as he kept talking. "That was the last birthday where she was actually _in her right mind._" He stressed those words, the ones that had truly upset him.

Morgan had a look of understanding wash over him as he nodded his head slowly.

"Every year after that, without fail, she would have an 'episode'." He realized he needed to explain what he meant, "She would think that our house was bugged by the government and that they were trying to lock her up or kill her. She thought _I _was a government argent too...she'd berate me and tear apart my things in an attempt to get me to confess and find the listening devices."

"So on my 16th birthday, I couldn't handle it anymore. Her episodes, being beaten and humiliated by everyone at school...I hid in her bathroom while she kept destroying our home...and I tried to kill myself." He whimpered, making Derek tighten his grip on his hand.

Morgan felt the tears well up in his eyes as well, feeling some break through. He couldn't get the image of a dying Spencer out of his mind.

"How pathetic is that? Let the only person that has ever loved you possibly hurt herself just because you can't handle it.." The scrawny teen clenched his free hand.

"You're not pathetic! You're a _teenager_, you can't be expected to take care of someone and always be strong. That's not fair to you." Derek spoke firmly, truthfully.

"Well, it _was _expected of me. My mom never wanted to get locked away...I promised her I'd never let her." He said quietly.

"Spencer.." Morgan sighed at Reid's look, and knowing he wouldn't sway that opinion, he asked him to continue.

Spencer let out a bitter laugh, "I woke up in the hospital, and my dad is standing in front of my bed...It's the first time I've seen him in 7 years and he tells me that I'm an idiot...and that my mom was checking herself into a mental hospital..that I had to live with him."

Morgan shook his head, his opinion on Reid's father lessening by the second.

Spencer let go of Derek's hand, "I'm the reason my mom is locked away just like she always feared."

Derek faced him, "Her mental illness is _not _your fault Reid. And you..trying to kill yourself.." He paused, sticking slightly on the words, "Isn't the reason she is in that hospital. You said it yourself, she recognized that she needed help and now she's getting it."

Spencer smiled at him, "Logically, I know that..but I still feel like I betrayed her, I mean..the only interaction she'll have from me is the letters I send her." He paused, running his hands through his hair, "I guess I proved my dad right though, I am a disappointment."

Morgan shook his head, "You aren't a disappointment. You're the smartest person I know, you can draw amazingly well, and you're kind."

He waited until Reid looked at him again to speak, "I haven't known you long, but I know you well enough to say that you're an incredible person. Regardless of what your father thinks."

"You really _don't_ know me that well." Spencer said, before thinking to himself, _I'm worthless._

"Maybe _you _don't know yourself as well as you think."

Reid scoffed, "You sound like an after-school special."

Derek laughed before frowning again. "Do you..still want to, you know.."

"Die?" He finished, making Derek cringe. He turned to smile weakly at the handsome teen, "No, not right now, at least."

Not giving him a chance to respond, Spencer wiped away his tears and stood up. Derek followed suit.

"Thank you so much. For listening..for everything." Reid hugged Morgan, too relieved to have shared some of his worst memories with him to feel awkward.

After being released, Derek spoke, "I'm just glad I could be here for you. I care about you, Reid..Well, we all do."

Spencer nodded in thanks, "Please..don't tell the others..I mean, they'll know eventually I'm sure..but I just won't be able to stand seeing their faces if I tell them too..the pity, or the disapproval."

Morgan nodded this time, "I promise. But, they _do _care about you, Reid. They'd just want to help you..." He paused, "JJ's sister committed suicide three years ago. Jayje was a freshman when it happened..she hasn't really been the same since."

Spencer started at him, feeling guilty. "I didn't know that...she seems so happy."

"She is, most of the time..but you..you never really get over a loved one's death." He told him, hoping the teen would consider that people _would_ miss him if he were gone.

Spencer nodded, wondering what JJ would think if he told her.

Morgan looked at the floor, "You have to promise me something."

He threw him a quizzical look, "What?"

"If you ever feel like _..attempting.._ again, you'll talk to me."

"We should probably go back out there so I can apologize. We've been gone for twenty-five minutes.." He said, walking towards the door.

"Spencer."

Reid stopped mid-pull, "I promise."

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.

Derek and Spencer (both looking exhausted and teary-eyed) approached the table, Penelope instantly apologizing to Reid.

Spencer shook his head, "You don't have to be sorry, Garcia. _I'm _ sorry." He looked towards the rest of his friends, "To all of you. Birthdays have never been a good time for me..and I just got angry. I'm so sorry."

His friends saw Derek close his eyes and breathe deeply, concern covering his face. Aaron quirked an eyebrow towards Rossi, who shrugged in return.

"I didn't mean to upset you, I thought you were just being stubborn." Penelope admitted, smirking apologetically.

Spencer nodded, smiling back. The table was quiet for a few minutes, everyone throwing glances towards Derek, begging for an explanation on the weird behavior from their newest member. He kept his eyes down.

"Just..can I ask one question?" She said timidly, breaking the silence.

Both Derek and Spencer tensed, but Reid said yes.

"Why not let us create a good birthday memory for you?" Her voice was reluctant but sweet, somewhat afraid he'd pop off again.

All eyes were on Spencer, but he didn't feel them. He didn't answer, either, contemplating how to say 'no' in his head.

Derek leaned over and spoke quietly, "I think that would be a good idea, Pretty Boy. You'll have something positive to remember..."

Everyone was confused and curious as to what the two had talked about, and why Derek, who only ever seemed truly close to Garcia, was murmuring in Spencer's ear.

Reid puffed out his cheeks, looking at Morgan insecurely before turning his attention to Penelope. "Okay. That would be..nice of you, but nothing big, okay? I'd be happy if we just went to the movies again."

Everyone smiled, the uncomfortable feeling slowly evaporating, but the questions still remained.

Penelope brightened up again. "Alright, alright...nothing extravagant."

"And no presents. Don't waste your money on someone you barely know..It's bad enough you're using up your time." He added.

David stared at the other teen, "It wouldn't be a waste."

Spencer didn't acknowledge that, "Can I at least know what you're planning?"

"No way! You don't even get to know when it's happening!" She laughed maniacally, making everyone laugh- except Spencer.

"Oh no...what have I agreed to?" He asked, faking misery (Well, partly).

.

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Aaron stopped before the library doors, "You're okay?"

Spencer nodded, "Yeah..I really am sorry about earlier."

Hotch shook his head, "Don't be, I understand not wanting to talk about certain things."

Reid smiled, "Thank you. I'll see you in math."

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Derek had just left Spencer's house again, having to drop off his forgotten phone, making him promise again that he'd talk to him if he needed to. Reid made Morgan promise that he'd do the same.

Spencer sat with Stella, telling her about what had happened at lunch.

"Derek seems like a good person. So do the rest of your friends." She commented.

"They are..he is. I never imagined I'd get to have people like that in my life." He paused, "Like you...you made me feel so welcome when I first met you."

She laughed, "You _are_ welcome, Honey."

He thanked her and headed up stairs for a shower, glad for the weekend. He needed to just be alone for a while.


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: Hello! I hope you enjoy this chapter, and I thank you all for the favs and follows. I hope to see more of what y'all think, so please drop me a review!

/

Chapter 15: Surprise, Spencer! It's Saturday

Spencer woke up, unsure of what pulled him out of his sleep. He paused...he could hear voices downstairs.

No distinct words, but it seemed as though whoever was down there was _trying _to be quiet.

Spencer groaned, pushing himself up further in bed. He wanted to go down and drink some coffee but social interaction was not on his list of activities today. Or ever, really. He strained to hear clearly, but to no avail.

He was fully awake now, wondering who it could be. His father wasn't here, he knew that much, so who was talking to Stella?

Reid walked towards his door, wearing mismatched socks, plaid PJ pants that collected around his feet, and a short-sleeved white t-shirt.

He pressed his ear against the door, sighing and deciding that he couldn't go any longer without his sugary beverage, plus he _really _needed to pee.

He opened the door and the voices ceased. He raised an eyebrow, turning his head towards the end of the hallway.

He shook his head, swallowing heavily, _I must be going crazy.._

Mad at himself for even thinking that, he almost slammed the door, barely managing to catch himself. _I'm not like mom..i'm not going to go crazy._

He pushed his hair out of his eyes, glancing at himself in the mirror before heading to the toilet.

After he finished washing his hands, he heard the voices again.

He heard a voice say his name faintly, _I just need coffee. I'm so tired, I'm hearing things.._ He assured himself, making his way to the staircase.

Still no voices, _That's good. _He thought, looking around the living room somewhat suspiciously.

He walked into the kitchen where Stella was washing the dishes from the night before.

"Hey, Stella." He said distractedly.

"Good morning, Spencer. How are you today?" She smiled at him.

He couldn't shake the feeling that something was off this morning, "I'm..good." He picked up the coffee cup that had become his.

"SURPRISE!" Multiple voices shouted, including Stella.

"AGH!" Spencer screamed, dropping and shattering his cup in the process. He turned around, eyes wide.

He stared at his friends in bewilderment, they had balloons, presents and a cake with them.

Stella grabbed a broom and pan, pushing Spencer away from the shards. "I've got it, just watch your feet." JJ opened the trash can for her.

This unfroze him, and he quickly folded his arms, realizing his wounds were showing. Only Derek's eyes lingered on them, the rest were staring at the teen's shocked expression.

"Surprise!" Penelope said again, shrugging.

"Oh my god." Reid said, more to himself than anyone else.

Emily started laughing, Will and Rossi joining in.

"Um..can I go change and then come back down?" Spencer said meekly, arms still snug against his body.

With the approval of his friends, he bolted back up the stairs.

He shut his door and quickly made his way to his closet.

_What the hell?_ He thought, _I didn't think they'd come here...or even celebrate today!_

He shook his head, _Stella was in on it, how else would they plan this so quickly?_

_Just be grateful. _ He thought with an exasperated sigh, pulling another long-sleeve shirt over his head.

.

.

He walked into the living room, where his friends now were.

"Hello." He greeted awkwardly, standing near the group.

Aaron smiled at him sympathetically. All of them said their hellos back.

"So, I'm assuming you're surprised?" Will asked, chuckling.

"To say the least, yes." He sat down next to Emily, the only seat available. "How did you guys even put this together?"

David shrugged, "Garcia, of course!"

Penelope grinned, "I couldn't have done it without Derek though, he had Mrs. Gualardi's number."

Reid looked at him in confusion, "What?"

"You remember you forgot your phone in my car yesterday?" Derek asked, and Spencer put the pieces together.

"You looked through my phone?" There was a slight anger in his tone, but it passed quickly.

Derek smiled and shrugged his shoulders, "Hey, I was just following directions from my Sweets."

"Wow." Reid could barely believe that they went through all this trouble in less than a day for _him._

He smiled at every one of them, "Thank you, you all scared the _crap _out of me, but...thank you."

Almost everyone's eyebrows rose, "Did you just kind of _curse? _I can't believe my ears!" Emily asked in a joking manner.

Reid rolled his eyes at their humor, "So..um..what exactly do we do..at a party?"

"Well, most people get drunk off their asses and dance." Rossi said, and Spencer made a face.

"But you're not most people, so...you have to open your gifts to figure out what we're doing today." JJ finished, pushing the wrapped presents towards him.

"I said no gifts, this is too much!" He tried arguing, only to be cut off by Penelope.

"Get over it!" She smirked, grabbing one of the gifts, "This is from me, JJ, Will, and Prentiss."

He looked at her with doubt, not wanting to really accept the gift.

"I swear to god, Reid. If you don't open the gift.." Emily started, making the others laugh.

He needed no further encouragement, he delicately started to unwrap the rectangular shaped item.

When he uncovered it, he grinned broadly. "You guys got me the _complete_ Star Trek box set?" He bounced excitedly, "No, no you shouldn't have! That's way too much!" He remembered the price for this set, he'd passed it many times in the store when he was younger..he always wanted to buy it, it was one of the few shows he watched.

"We did, and under social contract, you _have _to accept it." Prentiss said, glad to inform the genius on something.

"We remembered you talking about how you like to point out mistakes in SciFi movies and shows...I hope you don't already have it." JJ said, happy that her new friend seemed to like his gift.

"No, I didn't own it." He was almost speechless, "Thank you..I don't even know what to say." He suddenly felt guilty, _Th__ey shouldn't be doing this for me..They've only known me for two weeks!_

"That's a first." Derek laughed, making Spencer blush.

"You're welcome, sweetie!" Penelope said, taking his wrapping paper and crumpling it up.

"Now open your other one!" JJ exclaimed, "It's from Rossi and Hotch."

Spencer was somewhat surprised that they'd gotten him a gift as well. He figured Will was roped into buying the DVD's, and frankly he didn't see why any of them bought him something.

Aaron smiled, passing the heavy present towards Spencer.

He looked at them curiously, both looking back expectantly.

He pulled his eyes away from them after saying a 'thank you'. He tore the paper off, instantly recognizing what was inside.

A chess set. A beautiful, glass, chess set. "Oh my god.." He studied the box, "This is incredible." He shook his head. "Thank you..so much.. All of you."

He fought the tears of joy, not wanting to cry in front of them, he'd already done that before.

The group understood his calmed responses, they weren't expecting a screaming and hugging-Spencer. Seeing him unable to form sentences was proof enough that they'd made him happy.

"So should we cut up some cake and watch Star Trek, or what?" Emily asked, standing.

The rest stood, "Definitely." Spencer smiled at them, leading them towards the kitchen.

"Having a good time?" Stella asked, putting the cake on top of the kitchen island.

Reid nodded before looking at the cake. "Did you make this?"

"Si." She grinned.

"I bet it tastes amazing." He said as she pulled out plates, forks, and glasses. "Thank you, Stella!"

"It _looks _amazing." Will said, practically salivating.

Stella laughed, "Thank you. And you're welcome, Spencer."

"I think we should sing to the belated-birthday boy." Garcia suggested.

Despite Reid's refusal, they sang anyway. And he had to admit, he loved it.

.

.

"Don't think I forgot about your gift, Pretty Boy." Derek pulled Spencer aside as all of the teens headed back into the living room. "I've got something for you, but I don't want to give it to you until everyone leaves."

He walked away, leaving Reid blushing and confused.

.

.

.

.

"How do you know all of this random science and statistics?" Will asked, seriously impressed.

Reid shrugged, "At the rate I read, I have to read everything I get my hands on or I'll get bored."

Another episode had just ended and no one moved to start the next one, they were more interested in talking.

"So, you remember everything you've ever read?" JJ asked, "I mean, I know that's what having an eidetic memory means..but I just can't fathom remember **everything**. That would be pretty cool!"

That was definitely a topic everyone was interested in, and Spencer didn't even mind talking about it that much.

"Yep. Everything...but it's not all it's cracked up to be." He replied honestly. "It usually pertains to things I read, but I can remember things that happened to me as well."

He received a few curious stares.

"You'd be like, the perfect boyfriend!" Garcia said, explaining after seeing Spencer's look, "You'd remember every anniversary!"

He laughed along with the others, "Sure, I'd remember the dates, but I'd also remember every argument we would ever have to perfect detail."

"Okay, maybe we _shouldn't _date, hot stuff." Penelope amended.

Reid's eyes widened slightly, "I didn't think we were planning to."

Derek smirked, seeing how uneasy Spencer was. "Relax, Baby Boy. She and Kevin are all googoo-gaga over each other."

Reid's cheeks burned at the new nickname, laughing uncomfortably. "So...does Kevin go to our school?"

"He's a computer geek just like her." Rossi commented.

She glared at him playfully, answering Reid's question, "Yes he does my lovely, I should invite him next time we all hang out."

"You should invite Haley some time." JJ said to Aaron.

He sighed, "So, we're doing this again?"

Emily nodded before talking, "Oh come on, you know she'd love us and we'd like her because you do. Stop being a wimp!"

Derek, Will, and David laughed. Penelope and JJ grinned, though Jennifer seemed to feel guilty about doing so. Spencer just felt bad for him..he'd be scared too.

"Well why don't you find someone to introdu-" Aaron was cut off as the door opened, all of the teens turning towards it.

William Reid walked through the threshold 5 hours early, eyebrows raising at the sight of 7 extra teenagers in his living room.

Spencer stood quickly, "Hi, um..dad, these are my..uh..friends." His voice was unsteady, unsure of if his father would be upset.

_"I assumed,_ I'm Mr. Reid, nice to meet you all." He handed his briefcase off to Stella right as she walked in, barely looking at her. "I hate to break up this little party, but I'm having a business meeting here in an hour."

"Yes, sir." Spencer replied, head down, as the group nodded and returned their 'nice to meet you's'. Derek couldn't help the glare he placed on Mr. Reid's back.

Reid turned back to his friends, feeling slightly stupid. His father was the only person in the world who ever made him feel that way.

"So, that's _him?" _ Derek asked through gritted teeth. He was met with confused looks.

Spencer stared at his friend meaningfully, _Please don't bring it up, _being the message. "Yeah, that's him."

Morgan nodded and picked up the group's empty plates and bringing them to the kitchen. "You guys can go ahead and go, I'll help Spence clean up."

Slowly the teens stood, Stella bringing them each an extra slice of cake. After they thanked her, they all headed to the door. Spencer and Derek followed.

"I want to thank all of you again...I..I've never had such a great birthday, or _day_ in general.." He blushed at his confession, "Thank you."

Penelope bear-hugged him while the others murmured things like: 'no problem', 'you're welcome'.

"I'll see you guys at school on Monday!" He grinned and waved as they walked off towards their cars, receiving waves back.

Derek smiled at Spencer's reaction, "I'm glad you had a good time, Pretty Boy."

They closed the door. "I really did, thank you for helping plan this..I never expected to have fun at a party..though I can't imagine everyone had as good as time as me.." He felt a little guilty, he knew not everyone considered his pastimes fun.

"We did..hanging out is always fun." He smiled, they still stood by the door.

"Um..did you want to stay a little longer?" He smiled back nervously, wringing his hands. "I could ask my dad..we could hang out in my room."

"That sounds like a plan, I still have my gift for you."

Spencer grinned at the acceptance, telling him to wait there while he talked to his father.

.

.

He walked out of William's office smiling, his dad told him that as long as they weren't loud and were unseen while he was working, _one _friend could stay.

"He says you can stay!" He tried not to let on exactly how content he was with this news, or how fast the butterflies in his stomach were fluttering.

Morgan retreated from that couch, "Awesome, now I get to see what kind of room a genius has. But first, I need to get your gift from my truck."

Spencer rolled his eyes but let Morgan pass him to go outside, retreating to the living room to get his presents from his other friends.

After Derek returned he took the other gifts from his arms and followed Spencer to his room.

.

.

As Reid opened the door, Morgan chuckled. "This is exactly how I pictured it."

Spencer threw him a look as he closed the door behind them.

"I like to read, what's so bad about that?" He replied, only partly-offended.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it in a bad way." His reply was quick and apologetic, making Spencer laugh and Derek relax.

"We can sit on the bed..I don't have much else yet. My father said we can go shopping for my room once I was settled in." He said behind his friend, who was currently examining the books. "I didn't think I'd be needing any chairs though."

Derek nodded and sat near Spencer's pillows, gift in hand.

Spencer took a seat across from him, feeling only a little awkward.

Derek spoke first, "So..do you want to open your gift?"

He smiled, "Sure."

His friend handed over the present, "It's nothing like Star Trek or a chess set..but I hope you'll like it."

"I'd like anything you give me." The teen admitted, mumbling.

"Open it!" Derek pushed him, causing Spencer to laugh again.

"Okay, okay.." He tore off the paper, inspecting it's contents.

"Yesterday, in the bathroom..you told me about writing to your mom..and when we were texting you said that you did it every day.." Derek started explaining the gift, not sure if the teen liked it, "I thought this would be a good gift, but if you don't like it I can get you something else.."

Spencer shook his head, teary-eyed at the thoughtfulness of the present, "This is a great gift, Derek."

He examined each of the varying calligraphy pens, along with the ink and paper. "I can make sure each letter to her is perfect."

"I didn't want you to open it in front of the others..they would've been all nosey."

"Thank you. Both for thinking of that _and _ the gift..I can't wait to use it, I can tell her about today...that you gave me this." He grinned at the darker teen, laughing as he added, "You'll be in her good book."

Morgan smiled, relieved that he'd made a good choice. He didn't want to force Reid to talk about his mom in front of the others, so giving him the gift later had been his plan.

"How is she doing?" He asked, knowing that he was treading on dangerous waters.

Spence sighed, "I'm not actually allowed to contact her until her first month in the hospital..the letters remain in her box until then."

Derek leaned forward, hands in his lap, "I bet she'll be happy when 30 or so letters come in on one day though."

"Ha! Yeah, I didn't think about that." He replied, imagining his mom's surprise when they hand her the stack of letters.

Spencer paused for a minute before looking back at Derek, "Do you..do you think that everyone saw my scars?"

Derek's eyes instantly went to Reid's sleeves, "No one said anything when you went to change..I think they were to focused on how scared you looked when we jumped out."

"You noticed, that's the only reason why _I_ noticed." He said accusingly.

"Yeah, but that's because I know..about what happened." His voice lowered, "I can't just pretend that I don't, or that I'm not worried."

Spencer nodded, "I know..but I never intended on telling you. I didn't plan on people at school finding out..I didn't think I'd have anybody to worry about me."

"Well, you do. So you're going to have to deal with it!" Derek smiled lopsided at him, hitting his arm softly. Reid smiled back.

Derek pulled the chess set off of the floor, putting it in between the two. "So, how 'bout you teach me to play?"

Spencer grinned, "Gladly."

/

A/N: You guys have no idea how badly I wanted to make them kiss.._but, _I already have a plan for how their relationship starts. Please review!


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: Hey y'all! This chapter is a short (Just under a thousand words, which is what my minimum usually is) 'bonus' chapter between Derek and Spencer about Derek's past. (Timeline slightly changed, as well as a few details about a certain character).

It's Sunday, the day after Reid's party. William isn't home, Stella is off.

/

Chapter 16: He's Strong, And I'm Learning To Be Too

Derek sat on Spencer's bed, the other teen staring at him. The two had been there for a while, talking about various things until something struck a nerve on Morgan's part.

"You're not okay, Derek." Reid said at the tears forming in the older teenager's eyes, "You told me I could talk to you anytime I need to, _I promised you the same thing!"_

"I don't want you to think less of me." He practically whispered it.

Spencer shook his head, "Nothing you say could make me think anything less of you." Well, as long as he didn't say that he is a bully, but Spencer knew that that wasn't it. Something was eating away at the 18 year old.

"I've never told anyone._anyone."_ His look was desperate, "Not even Penelope."

Okay, this had to be much worse than Spencer was imagining. For Derek to not tell Garcia...Reid was afraid of what he was going to hear.

Reid placed a comforting hand on Morgan's knee, "You can tell me."

Derek closed his eyes, resigned, "After..after my dad died..I started getting into trouble." He paced out his breaths, bunching up his fists.

"I got into _really_ bad fights with a local gang, amongst other things.." He looked at Reid, "I got arrested when I was _eleven_, and after that I tried to step up and be the man of the house but the cops still tried to pin things on me."

Reid squeezed his knee, knowing Derek had more to say.

"I picked up football..started hanging out at the community center and staying off of the streets." He sighed.

"I caught the eye of the owner, Carl Buford..he thought I had the potential to become a pro-football player. I learned so much from him, he became like a father figure."

Derek stopped talking, obviously contemplating on whether or not he should continue.

"It helps to talk about things, Der." Spencer added softly, gaining the red-eyed teen's attention.

"But once I say it..there's no taking it back. I don't know if I can handle that." He shook his head, roughly wiping away a few tears.

He was starting to scare Reid, he'd never seen him so utterly lost. But he knew what is what like to not want to bring up the past.

"..You don't _have _to tell me." He responded quietly, "But keeping things inside..it breaks you down, Derek. Trust me, I know."

Morgan let out a small cry that psychically pained Reid.

"Buford..he didn't just have his eye on me because he wanted me for football.." He said dully, attempting to keep the emotion out of his voice.

Spencer shook his head slightly, he had a bad feeling he knew what Derek was about to say.

Morgan saw the understanding in his eyes and looked away, "..He would bring me to his cabin. H-he'd give me alcohol so I wouldn't be thinking as clearly."

"The first time he..touched..me, I thought it was an accident, but it wasn't." A pained moan escaped his lips, "God, it wasn't an accident...I should have _known, _I should have told him to stop!"

Reid was crying, but he shook his head furiously, "I'm so sorry Derek..but what he did to you _was not_ and _is not_ your fault! He manipulated you, you _trusted_ him and he took advantage of that."

"I could have stopped him, Reid." He replied fiercely, "I could have stopped him..I could have stopped him.." He repeated the phrase over and over, pulling away from Spencer and hiding his face in between his knees.

Reid crawled closer to him, not wanting to let his friend shut himself away. He hesitantly laid a hand on the sobbing teen's back, and when no reaction occurred he slowly rubbed circles on it.

"You were a child, Derek." He said soothingly, "It's not your fault."

They sat together in a half-hug for 5 minutes, neither talking but both understanding that they didn't need to at the moment.

When Derek sat up, Spencer watched him closely.

"You..you can't tell anyone." Morgan stared at his friend. "I'm not ready to tell my family."

"I won't tell anyone..but..don't you want him to go to jail? For you to get justice?" He asked delicately.

The mixed-teen shook his head, "He's already in jail." At Spencer's quizzical look he continued, "Not..not for rape. He killed a guy in my old neighborhood..I don't have to worry about him hurting some other kid."

Reid nodded slightly, "I'm so sorry, Derek."

Morgan nodded dismissively, "Thank you..for listening, for not freaking out...for not looking at me like I'm disgusting."

"You're still the same Derek I've gotten to know. The same strong and caring guy, knowing what happened to you will never change that."

"I don't feel strong." He admitted. "I act like it, but half the time I'm just trying to prove Carl wrong..that I'm not weak, that I didn't deserve what he did to me..but I am, and I did."

"You're one of the strongest people I know, psychically and mentally. To be able to still function, and still be happy and _live _with all that you've gone through..you're strong, Derek. You didn't deserve that! No one deserves that.."

"Then I guess you're just as strong as I am, Pretty Boy." He said, staring off into the distance.

Spencer shook his head, "No, not yet..but I'm learning."


	17. Chapter 17

A/N: Hey guys! I'm here with another chapter, I hope you all like it! I want to thank you for continuing to read and I know a lot of you are dying to see some Moreid and I promise it will happen some time soon..you'll just have to wait and see when!

This is mainly a conversation between Derek and Spencer through text.

Please read and review, I like to know what y'all think!

/

Chapter 17: Late Night Chats

It had been 33 days since Spencer tried to kill himself.

33 days of accepting that he couldn't help his mother, 33 days of noticing opposing feelings for Spencer between Stella and William, 33 days of alternating between wishing he were dead and never feeling better.

33 days didn't seem like that long, it was barely over a month, but things can change drastically in a small amount of time.

It had been 26 days since he met the people who changed things for the better, 26 days since he started to feel that he just _might_ be worth it.

It had been 12 days since his friends had thrown him a birthday party, 12 days since his first pleasant birthday memory in 7 years.

It had been 11 days since he learned how much Derek trusted him. 11 days since Spencer vowed to get better.

It had been 4 hours since he'd thought about hurting himself last, 4 hours since he'd come close to slicing his wrists again.

It had been 4 hours since Derek unknowingly brought him back from the edge.

.

.

Spencer exhaled slowly, tiredly rereading the text messages between Derek and himself even though he'd already memorized them.

.

.

Morgan had texted him as he walked into the bathroom in hopes of relieving his aching brain through a blade.

Darius and his friends were still berating Spencer daily, threatening to beat him (amongst other things) but he stopped telling his friends about it. He didn't want to worry them or make them (re: Derek) do anything stupid.

He'd been taking in all of the names they were calling him and storing them in his mind. He could hear them constantly, in their horrible, mocking tones. He was considering cutting again, maybe even going a little too far..but that text from Derek stopped him in his tracks.

Reid didn't tell him what he'd been planning on doing, or that getting a message from him had made him think twice about what he had **just** wanted to do so badly.

Spencer instead pulled out his pills that he'd skipped for the past two days. He didn't know why he hadn't taken them, on some level it was probably just his shame and fear of having to be on medication in order to remain mentally stable.

He swallowed the pill, reprimanding himself for being so silly to think that he was lesser for taking it. _Getting help isn't bad.._

He picked up the razor from the counter, staring at it before ultimately tossing it in the trash can. He smiled to himself, a proud feeling placing itself within him.

His gaze turned from the garbage to his cellphone with the text he'd yet to answer.

Derek: _Hey, Spencer. You still up?_

Spencer: Ye_ah, sorry for the delay, what are you doing up at 1 AM?_

_Derek: I could ask you the same question, Pretty Boy._

Spencer smiled at the nickname, glad he was alone so no one could see him blush.

_Derek: __I couldn't sleep._

_Spencer: Everything okay?_

_Derek: I had the dream about my dad again..I know if I try to sleep it'll just happen again._

_Spencer: I'm sorry, Der...has there been any change since the last time you dreamt of it? I've read that reoccurring nightmares can slowly be changed by your mind to where they're essentially 'beaten'._

Derek: _It always starts off the same..my dad and me riding in his car when he gets a call about a robbery in progress._

_Derek: Then I see the guy shoot him..but it isn't the robber, it's Carl Buford.. And usually I can't do anything about it, but I've been trying to get ahold of the gun._

_Derek: Do you have any information stored up in that brain of yours that could stop the dreams?_

He frowned. Poor Derek had to see his own father killed..he knew how much he loved his dad. And then Carl Buford...he wished he could make it better_._

_Spencer: Unfortunately, I believe it's the mind's way of dealing with pain. It's just a part of working through it._

Spencer: _Make sure to stay warm, I read that people who sleep in cold temperatures have nightmares more frequently._

Reid walked back into his bedroom, still texting.

Spencer: _And you can talk to me anytime. I'm always here._

_Derek: Thank you, Spencer._

_Derek: School is going to be a bitch running on no sleep.._

_Spencer: Ugh, I've had my fair share of those days. Why do you think I love coffee so much?_

_Derek: Ha! I don't think you can call that concoction coffee. It's 99% sugar. :P _

_Derek: At least it's Friday. Only one test, but it's math...not that math is a big deal for you._

_Spencer: It is coffee!_

Spencer: _Hey, you're good with math and tests as well. Don't short change yourself._

_Spencer: You're getting an A in science! And you're doing really well in Mr. Hultz' class._

_Derek: And a C in English...I hate Macbeth so much._

_Spencer: I can help you, you know my mother was a British Literature professor._

_Derek: You wouldn't mind? I don't want to waste your time._

_Spencer: I live for English._

_Spencer: And it's not a waste of my time, just tell me when!_

_Derek: My mom has been dying to meet you anyways, she's mad you've been to my house and still haven't met her lol. How about after school tomorrow?_

_Derek: Or another time if you're busy._

Spencer: _I'm never busy, I'll tell Stella in the morning._

_Spencer: Well, in a few hours considering it's 2:12 AM._

_Derek: You tired yet?_

_Spencer: Hardly, this conversation keeps me awake._

_Derek: Sorry, Pretty Boy. I can let you go._

Reid's eyes widened, quickly responding out of guilt.

_Spencer: I didn't mean it in that way!_

_Spencer: I'd rather be talking to you than laying in my bed thinking too much._

_Derek: What are you thinking about that's keeping you up?_

Reid thought about it, there wasn't really _one _thing keeping him up.

_Spencer: Everything? It's kind of hard to shut_ down my brain.

Derek: _I bet. I can't imagine having so much stored up there and never forgetting any of it._

_Derek: I mean, I'll never forget what happened to my dad, or the time my sister Desirée had a 104 degree fever and had to go to the hospital..Carl buford...those make a huge impact..but everything? ..I don't know._

_Tears formed in his eyes as he read the text, he wouldn't forget what happen to Derek either._

_Spencer: It's not easy..but neither are your memories. I at least have the good memories memorized as well._

_Derek: That's true. That part would be really nice._

_Derek: Do you remember how you were feeling and what you were thinking in every situation too?_

Spencer: _I do._

Reid paused, not sure if he really wanted to tell Derek how he felt the first time he met him. He definitely wouldn't include the thoughts about how handsome he is. He decided to tell him _some_ truth.

_Spencer: Like the first time I met you, I thought you would laugh at me when you knocked me over and how scared I was when I learned you were the star football player._

_Derek: You were scared of me? You never told me that._

_Spencer: It went away quickly, when I saw how nice you were._

_Derek: You know I'd never hurt you, right?_

_Spencer: It wasn't necessarily you, I just had some bad experiences with athletes, and cheerleaders...everybody if I'm honest._

_Derek: They bullied you a lot? The jocks here, for the most part, are pretty friendly._

_Spencer: It was passed the point of being labeled bullying..abuse and harassment fits better. My old school wasn't as good as this one._

_Derek: God, what did they do to you?_

_Spencer: Beat me, taunted me, humiliated me, threw things at me..._

_Spencer: The worst was when the most popular girl in school supposedly wanted to be my friend. I was 12 so I was really excited...I was to meet her on the football field to talk, when I got there the entire football team and cheer squad was there._

_Spencer: They stripped me naked and duct-taped me to the field goal pole, laughed and took pictures before leaving me there. The groundskeeper got me down hours later._

Reid sighed as the message went through, he'd never told anyone other than his old principal about that.

_Derek: Please tell me they got in trouble..I swear if I ever see one of them, I'm going to hurt them._

_Derek: You didn't deserve that Spencer. I don't know what the hell is wrong with those people, how can you do that to someone, let alone a 12 year old?_

_Spencer: You don't have to do that._

_Spencer: I don't even want to know why, the reasons would just be ridiculous. I just wish I could forget._

_Derek: I wonder what they would have said if your attempt..worked..or if you stayed there after it..If they would have apologized.._

_Spencer: I don't think they would have cared, they'd just laugh at me._

_Derek: Well, fuck them. They never saw how great you are._

Reid laughed to himself as he read the text. He knew better than to argue with Derek (or anyone else in the group) when it came to compliments so he just accepted it without believing it.

_Spencer: Thank you._

_Derek: Anytime. I can't believe it's nearly 3._

_Spencer: You can have some coffee in the morning too._

_Derek: Good, I'm gonna need it. What do you say? Should we try and sleep?_

_Derek: Not that you need beauty sleep._

Reid felt his cheeks flare up again, grinning at the message.

_Spencer: You don't either, but if you want to be mentally prepared for the test then we probably should._

_Derek: Ha, we'll see how it goes.. Goodnight/good morning Spencer._

_Spencer: I hope you can sleep, see you later._

_._

_._

Spencer put his phone on the charger before finally resting his eyes, still replaying the conversation in his mind.


	18. Chapter 18

A/N: Thank you for reading! Receiving emails about favs/follows/reviews make me so happy that I want to scream!

Closer and closer we come to Moreid...still not quite there.

Please review, tell me how you're liking things!

/

Chapter 18: Meeting Mrs. Morgan

"Shit, that test was hard." Will mumbled, sitting back down next to Spencer. He was the last of the four to turn it in.

The two boys in front turned to face him.

Aaron looked at him, whispering since there were still tests out. "Did you remember to flip the signs?"

Will nodded, "Yeah.. I just hope I did everything else correctly."

Spencer looked at Derek, "How do you think you did?"

Morgan spoke back in a hushed tone, "I think I did pretty good. Probably not a 100, but I don't think I missed much."

Reid smiled, "Told you."

Derek smiled and rolled his eyes, "Yeah, yeah..you know everything."

After staring a Derek a moment too long, he asked Aaron how he did.

"Aced it." Hotch said calmly, "But 50 questions was way too much."

"Seriously! I thought Henderson's tests were bad last year, but this? It's ridiculous, we only have an hour in here." A pissed-off Will commented.

"At least it's only once every 2 weeks." Spencer said.

"I think I'd rather have shorter tests every week." Derek replied.

"Guys, there are still tests out. Please quiet down." Mr. Hultz eyed the group with a scowl.

Spencer reddened and shrunk back, he hated being called out.

.

.

"Have a good weekend." Aaron called out as he left the classroom, Will following behind.

"See ya, man." Morgan replied before slipping his arm around Reid's shoulders.

Reid took a sharp intake of breath at the contact, Morgan eyed him.

"You good?" The black teen asked as he started to walk with his friend underneath him.

"Y-yeah." Spencer smiled, avoiding looking directly at him, "I'm good."

The pair received many stares from their fellow students as they walked to Derek's car, though only Spencer seemed to notice them.

Morgan shut his door and turned on the car as Reid got situated.

Reid was more than a little nervous to meet his crush's (Yes, he'd admitted to himself that he does in fact have a _huge _crush on the beautiful teen) mother.

Spencer kept his head on the window, feeling the anxiety bubbling in his chest. _What if his mom and sisters don't like me and won't want Derek to speak to me ever again..._

Derek glanced towards the white teen, wondering why he'd barely spoken since school ended.

"Spence?"

The worried voice brought him back to the car, he looked over at his friend. "Yeah?"

"What's up?"

He shook his head, "Nothing. Just distracted."

"I can see the gears turnin' in your head, kid. Seriously, you okay?"

He glowered at the dreaded nickname, "I..I've never met anybody's family before...I don't think I'm very good at first impressions."

"Don't even worry, my mom loves everyone. And my sisters will probably try to turn you into _their _best friend." Derek laughed.

Reid's ears perked at the comment about his sisters and he stared at the man beside him in disbelief. "I-I'm your best friend?"

"Well, you and Garcia, of course." He replied kindly.

Reid smiled to himself, he had a best friend! He never imagined that would happen.

"I hope I'm yours, Baby Boy!" Derek teased.

"Of course you are!" He responded, surprised that he'd think otherwise.

.

.

"You all good?" Derek asked as he exited the truck, waiting for Spencer to walk over to him.

Reid took a deep breath and nodded, following Morgan to the door.

"Hey, momma! I'm home!" Derek called out into the cozy-looking living room.

Mrs. Morgan appeared around the corner, "Hey, Honey."

She walked towards the teens, "You must be _the _Spencer Reid!" She grinned at him and Reid could see where Derek got his smile. "You've been hiding from me."

A light blush took place on his cheeks, "I suppose I am..It's nice to meet you Mrs. Morgan." He greeted, voice slightly shaky.

"Call me Fran, Hun." She patted his arm before giving Morgan a kiss on the cheek.

"Aw, come on, ma!" He teased, wiping his cheek.

She pushed him playfully, "You boys go on. We'll get to know each other a little better later, I need to start dinner. You're staying for dinner, right?"

Spencer looked at Derek, "Umm..am I?"

Morgan smiled, "If you want to."

Reid looked back towards the elder Morgan, "I guess I'm staying, if that's okay with you."

"Of course!" She said sweetly before making her way to the kitchen.

"It was nice meeting you, Mrs. Mor- Fran." Spencer squeaked out before following Derek.

.

.

Derek was sprawled out on his bed, laying on his stomach and laughing as he watched Spencer play his video game. Reid was directly under him, sitting on the floor Indian-style.

"You do realize that the zombie apocalypse will never happen, right?" Reid asked, exasperated after dying for the third time.

"It's a _game_, Reid. It doesn't have to be accurate to real life." He retorted.

Spencer grumbled out a few choice words at the TV screen before placing the controller down. "We're supposed to be studying for your English class."

Morgan dropped his face onto his bed dramatically, "We don't have to spend the _entire _time doing that. That's not why I invited you over."

Reid quirked an eyebrow, looking up towards Derek, "Yes it was."

"Well, it's not the whole reason." He replied, pushing himself up onto his elbows as Spencer turned and sat, facing him. "We haven't been able to hang out that much because of football, and now that it's over, we can...same goes for the whole group."

"Okay, but I still don't want to play that _idiotic_ game." He replied with a small, teasing smile.

"Hey, _I _ happen to like that game." Derek said, feigning hurt.

Spencer shrugged his shoulders, still playfully taunting the older teen.

"I think I deserve an apology." Morgan said.

Spencer leaned back on one arm, zipping his lips with his free hand and smiling smugly.

Suddenly Derek pounced on top of Spencer, startling him.

"Apologize!" Derek said, the light tone still present as he pinned Spencer's arms on either side of his head.

Reid didn't say anything for a moment, first trying to calm down the fear of being beaten, then from realizing that _Derek Morgan_ was practically straddling him.

"_Apologize, Spencer..." _He dragged out, squinting his eyes at the lithe teen beneath him.

Reid needed to get out from under him before something potentially embarrassing happened, luckily he found his voice. "I-I'm sorry!"

Derek loosened his already easy grip on his friend, who bolted out from under him.

Spencer turned away from Morgan, taking deep breaths.

"Are you okay?" Derek asked, scrambling to his feet and full of concern. "I didn't mean to scare you, I'm used to playing around..I didn't think about the bulli-"

"No, no, you're totally fine." Reid raised a hand to him to stop him, voice full of assurance, "I just wasn't expecting to be..pinned down."

"Are you sure?" He moved closer to Reid, obviously feeling guilty.

Spencer smiled at him, thoughts of how _right _it felt laying under Derek running through his mind. "100 percent, seriously, don't worry."

To further prove his point he pushed Derek lightly in the chest, successfully making him stumble backwards.

"Did I actually make the muscly, rock-solid Derek Morgan _fall_?" He asked teasingly.

_Oh god, did I really just say that? _He thought miserably as he waited for his friend's reply.

Morgan eyed him strangely and laughed, "You just caught me off guard, and I did _not_ fall!"

Spencer grinned, "Sure..."

Derek moved closer to Spencer, who was currently near the door. Morgan opened his mouth to say something when a loud knock resounded through the room.

Morgan exhaled, moving back an inch.

"Derek! Momma says dinner is ready!" A female voice yelled through the door.

"Alright! Be down in a minute." Morgan responded, somewhat harshly.

The two paused for a moment before Derek spoke, "We should get down there, my mom will bust the door down if we don't."

Reid laughed lightly and followed him to the dining room.

.

.

Desirée and Sarah were talking about whose fake nails looked better as Derek and Spencer walked in.

"Did you know that acrylic nails were invented in 1978 and that it was actually a dentist who created them?" Spencer asked before he could stop himself.

The sisters exchanged glances before looking towards the unfamiliar face.

"You must be Spencer, right?" Sarah's eyes flickered to Morgan's before settling back on Reid. "Derek talks about you."

Spencer's eyebrows furrowed, he too glancing at Derek, who was currently glaring at his sister, "He does?"

Desirée chuckled and introduced herself as Fran walked in with plates.

"Enough, girls." Fran chastised, handing the plates to a grateful-looking Derek.

"Spencer, do you like pot roast?" Mrs. Morgan asked.

"Yes, ma'am." He nodded, staying close to Derek.

"Good..Des, come help me." She replied, turning back to the kitchen.

Spencer took a seat next to Derek, Sarah across from him.

"Ma makes the best pot roast, you'll just about die when you taste it!" Sarah informed Reid happily.

Derek tensed, stealing a glance at Spencer.

"I've only had it one other time, I bet your mom's will be really good." He responded, not bothering to look back at his friend.

.

.

"Was Las Vegas as awesome as it seems?" Sarah asked, picking up another carrot.

Reid swallowed his bite, "Well, I didn't experience what makes Vegas famous, I was too young."

The occupants of the table nodded. Desirée spoke, "Still, it's probably better than boring old Quantico."

"Derek said you lived in Chicago? Did you like it better there?" Reid questioned.

"Desirée was too young to remember, but I was 13 when we left." Derek commented and smiled at his sister, "It's better here."

Spencer knew Derek's reasons for being content with leaving Chicago, and felt slightly guilty for asking Sarah about her hometown.

"Honestly, it is better. It's safer, at least." Sarah agreed.

"Getting out of that neighborhood was one of the best things I've decided on." Fran commented, "Seeing as how the role models of the community were scum, and the violence was growing."

The girls of the table ventured off into another conversation involving some of their go-to stores in the old neighborhood.

Reid contemplated bashfully before he squeezed Morgan's leg under the table and gave him a reassuring side-smile when he sensed how uncomfortable he was. He received a small smile in return.

A half hour later the dishes were cleared. Spencer sat on the couch in between Desirée and Sarah waiting for Derek to grab his car keys.

"I haven't seen either of you around school." Spencer commented, feeling uncomfortable sandwiched between the two while they gazed at him.

"We go to a private school in town. Derek chose public school." Sarah informed her brother's friend.

Reid nodded as Morgan walked back into the room.

He gave his sisters a look, "Jesus, get off of Spencer! You're making him uncomfortable."

Reid looked at him gratefully as his sisters peeled away from him.

Desirée rolled her eyes, "Nice to meet you, Spencer."

He smiled and stood next to Derek, "You as well. Bye Sarah."

Sarah nodded and leaned back on the couch, "Night, Spencer. See you soon."

"Goodbye sweetie!" Mrs. Morgan called to Reid before the boys headed out the door.


	19. Chapter 19

A/N: Hey hey hey! Glad you're continuing to read! I have a feeling I'm going to get yelled at for this chapter...

Enjoy the chapter, and please review!

/

Chapter 19: Something's Up

Spencer was particularly happy this Monday morning as he sat in Derek's truck and chatted with the teen on the way to school.

From the moment he'd woken up to the smell of bacon he _knew_ that today would be a good one. Stella had joked with him that he was actually alert this morning, rather than the zombie she usually greeted.

"So have you talked to your mom yet?" Derek asked, "Did she get your letters?"

Reid smiled, "They let her talk to me on the phone, she says she's doing really well and that she loves the letters."

Morgan smiled at that, "Good, I bet those kept her busy for a while."

"Not too long." Spencer laughed, "But they actually have various things for the..patients to do there, so I think she's pretty busy."

Derek nodded, "Did her doctor tell you how she's adjusting and everything?"

They were nearing the school as Reid answered, "I talked with him briefly, he told me that she's doing fairly well. She's still having 'episodes' and she forgets who everyone is sometimes..but they know how to handle it."

Morgan pulled into his usual spot, the parking lot still rather vacant. Neither of them moved to leave yet since they were earlier than usual.

"I bet she'd like to get pictures along with the letters. Place faces with everyone you tell her about." The mixed teen turned in his seat slightly to face his friend, Reid doing the same.

"She would probably love that, but I don't know how I'd explain to everyone why I'm taking pictures of them."

Derek shrugged, "We take photos of each other all the time, hell, Garcia has like 50 of you."

Reid's eyebrows raised, "What? I never saw her taking photos of me!"

Morgan laughed, "She's a stealthy one, Pretty Boy."

Spencer's face reddened involuntarily at the nickname, you'd think he'd be used to it by now. Reid's mind ventured off to a place it had been many times before. _Why does he call me that?_

"Spencer?" Derek questioned.

He looked up, "Oh, sorry. I..thank you for asking about my mom." He paused, "You're the only one I really talk to about her, you actually..care?" The last part unintentionally came out as a question.

"Of course I care, Spencer." He spoke softly.

They'd both managed to get slightly closer to each other throughout the conversation, Spencer gulped. _Should I do it?_

"She's important to you, so she's important to me." Derek continued, still staring into Spencer's eyes.

_He has to like me..the nicknames, the way he looks at me.._ Reid stared back at the teen, neither saying a word.

_Just go for it, Spencer!_ He mentally encouraged himself.

Spencer leaned into Derek's space, brushing his lips against the older teen shyly. He thought he felt the lips begin to play against his, but he quickly realized that that wasn't the case.

Derek didn't move.

Derek didn't kiss back.

The silence was excruciating.

Reid pulled away, panicking. He looked at his expression, but he just stared back at him.

"Oh god, Derek...I'm sorry!" His breath picked up as he stared back at him, still not speaking. "I..I wasn't thinking, I didn't mean to..to.."

Morgan slowly backed away and faced the steering wheel, unable to look him in the eye, "You should go to class, Reid. You're going to be late." A blatant lie, the warning bell had yet to even ring.

Reid opened and closed his mouth a few times, tears prickling in his eyes. He picked his bag up off of the floor and climbed out. "I'm sorry..." He whispered, feeling ashamed and rejected.

.

.

.

He held his head in his hands, attempting to shield the fact that he was crying away from his friends, but the effort was useless.

"Reid?" Penelope questioned as she and Emily stared at their young friend worriedly.

He didn't have it in him to respond, _I've been rejected so many times before...why does it hurtso much this time?_

He only picked his head up when the teacher began his lesson, but he tuned it out. He saw Garcia pull out her phone, no doubt texting his best friend about his weird behavior.

_He's not your best friend anymore, let alone a friend at all._ His face hardened at the thought, _D__o you really think he'd want to talk to you after this? You disgust him._

Reid spent the rest of the class period staring off into nothing, every so often catching the glances of his two friends.

.

.

Rossi unsuccessfully attempted to make Spencer laugh, or talk, or just do _something_ rather than look like a puppy who'd been kicked.

It was obvious the kid had been crying, a text from Prentiss only confirming the observation.

"Did Darius and his friends mess with you again?" He asked, figuring that had to be the cause of his sulking.

Spencer looked at him disdainfully, "No."

"Then what's wrong?" He was surprised Reid responded the first time (and the attitude that came with it) and wasn't sure he'd answer another question.

Spencer shook his head, voice softening once he'd realized how harsh he sounded, "Nothing."

.

.

Reid walked into his art class with a queasy stomach at the thought of seeing Morgan again.

Derek was sitting at their usual spot, talking to the girl at the table next to him. The same girl Spencer had been jealous of on his first day. _He likes her...how could I ever think he liked me?_

Morgan looked up, catching his eye for a brief moment before turning away awkwardly.

When he realized he was just standing at the front of the room, he solemnly walked to his seat.

He placed his bag on the floor and glanced at Derek. He was still flirting with the girl, Allison, completely turned away from the skinny teen.

He sighed, he didn't even have a project to _try_ and distract himself with, he'd finished it last week.

Derek eventually went to get his paper mâché mask out of the cabinets, along with brushes and paint.

Spencer watched him until the teen made his way back to their shared table, quickly averting his eyes to his hands.

He felt Morgan's stare on him for a minute, and his cheeks burned at the attention. He blinked away the tears.

When the hour had passed, and the lunch bell rang, Derek hurriedly gathered his things and left the room. Spencer stared after him, sighing and grabbing his bag.

_I've ruined everything. When they found out that I kissed him they won't be my friends anymore._ he hung back in the hall, allowing everyone to pass him as he thought about what he should do.

_I can't sit with them, he might have told them already...or they'll find out when I get there_. He walked to the bathroom where he'd confessed everything to Derek.

He stood at the sink for a few minutes, lost in thought until a text interrupted his daze.

Penelope: _Hey, where are you? Derek says you should have been here by now._

He bit his lip, sending back a reply.

_Spencer: I don't really feel like eating today. I'll see you tomorrow._

_Penelope: Well, you don't have to eat. Just come sit with us._

_He sighed, she would probably track his phone and pull him out of the bathroom herself if he didn't go to the table._

_Penelope: Please?_

_Spencer: Okay._

He fixed his strap, taking one last look in the mirror before exiting the restroom.

.

.

Reid eyed the group as he approached them, Derek sat in the same spot he always had.

He sat down hesitantly, all eyes on him, minus one pair.

"Hey." Reid greeted quietly, not bothering to take off his bag.

"So, where were you?" JJ asked him.

"I-uh, I was t-talking to the librarian." He replied.

Garcia narrowed her eyes, "The library isn't open during this lunch."

"Leave him alone, Garcia." Aaron scolded, nodding to Spencer when he saw his appreciative glance.

Spencer chanced another glance at Derek when he thought no one was watching, Morgan didn't look back and he felt his heart break a little bit more.

Throughout the lunch Derek remained his charming self, the tension between the two prominent to Spencer, yet hidden to everyone else.

.

.

.

Derek looked at Spencer as if he was going to say something, but ultimately he decided against it, turning and leaving the classroom.

Reid groaned to himself before taking the route to walk home. _If I had just died...I-I wouldn't be hurting this badly._

He thought back to a study he read about, it stated that heartbreak could literally kill you. He wasn't sure it actually could, but it felt powerful enough to.

_If this doesn't kill me, I will._


	20. Chapter 20

A/N: Yeah, the last chapter was a bit of a set-back in their relationship, but it's also a step forward. Things will get better.

I wrote this chapter in about ten or so minutes because the next chapter occurs three days after the kiss, so it is an under 1,000 word-chapter...but I still wanted to post it as an in between for what happens in chapter 21...(ooh, ominous). I'm almost finished with chapter 29.

Please review!

/

Chapter 20: Suffering In Silence

"Hey..you doing okay?" Emily asked the still-quiet teen.

He looked towards her and Penelope with sad eyes, giving them a forced smile. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"We were thinking about going to the mall on Friday or catch a movie, do you want to go?" Garcia asked, hoping to cheer up the teen.

He shook his head, "Sorry..I can't."

She nodded, not believing the obvious lie. "Okay, but it would be just us..you, me, and Prentiss."

He nodded as well, "You two have fun."

Emily shrugged her shoulders to Pen, mouthing 'It's up to him to tell us.'

.

.

Reid and Rossi sat in their English room, Strauss' absence making the class as a whole much happier, even Spencer.

"So.." David began, sensing that his friend was still in a saddened-state, "How's your day been? Better now that Strauss is gone, I'm sure."

Spencer smile slightly, trying to humor Rossi and cheer himself up. "It's been okay." He sighed, "I thought you liked Ms. Strauss."

David was glad he was actually replying, "I do, sometimes..other times she's just, you know."

He have him an understanding look, "Yeah, I know."

The older teen waited patiently for more, not sure if he'd get another word.

"I've been playing chess against myself with the glass set." Spencer informed him, trying to ignore the memories of the party so he wouldn't worsen his mood.

David smiled, "We thought you'd like it..I've never been very good at the game, myself."

"It's all a matter of strategy." He commented absently, remembering the joy he felt on that Saturday.

.

.

Spencer watched Derek's hands as he dipped the newspaper strips in the paste. _He's surprisingly messy._

The thought almost made him laugh, causing him to nearly tell Morgan of his little observation before reminding himself of what had happened..not that it stayed out of his mind for long.

Reid sighed.

Morgan glanced at him, a contemplative look on his face, but ultimately began to work again.

He continued to 'subtly' watch the teen throughout the period, half the time not even truly focusing on what he was doing. By the time Morgan had cleaned up, the teen was still wishing he would speak to him.

He knew the bell was about to ring, and decided to leave Derek with another apology before he ran off early to the lunch table.

"I never should have done it, and I wish I could take it back." The bell rang as he said it to the sitting football player, Spencer leaving the room first this time.

.

.

"It's 5,972,190,000,000,000 billion kg." Reid commented instinctually to Jayje, who was currently working on an extra-credit assignment she'd forgotten about.

Will shook his head, "I'll never get used to that, man."

Spencer reddened and looked down sheepishly, digging half-heartedly into his green bean casserole that he'd yet to take a bite out of 25 minutes into lunch. Derek spared him a glance before staring down at his own untouched food.

Most of the group exchanged looks, the fact that something was wrong becoming more and more evident.

"Okay, seriously, what's up with you two?" Aaron asked exhaustedly, "You've barely looked at each other."

Morgan looked at Reid then, before darting away guiltily. "There's nothing wrong."

Spencer fought the sigh, not wanting to let anymore of their crumbling situation show. "He's telling the truth, we're fine."

.

.

.

Derek walked into their math class, David and Will staring at him expectantly, watching how he would react to Spencer. Would their suspicions have more ground?

Morgan noticed their eyes though, he knew what they were doing. So when he sat down, he gave Spencer a smile and a 'hello', hoping to appease their worry..but Reid's reaction probably didn't help.

Reid's eyes grew at the greeting, confusion evident on his pale face. _He's talking to me? _ But Spencer saw the curious and hopeful glance Derek gave the two other friends, and it dawned on him. _He just doesn't want them to know...he's ashamed._

.

.

.

"You seem so sad, Spencer." Stella told him quietly as they sat on the couch watching 'Ellen'.

He faced her, "I'm okay."

"Are you taking your medicine daily?" She asked, ever the mother figure, making him smile slightly.

"Yes ma'am." She rolled her eyes at the formality, "I'm just having an off..week."

They were silent for a moment before she spoke again, softly. "I suppose everyone is entitled to a bad week."

"Even really, really off ones?" He asked innocently, truly wanting to know the answer.

She gently pulled him into a hug, one that he didnt refuse, holding him there as she spoke. "Yes, Spencer...unfortunately."


	21. Chapter 21

A/N: So...that chapter 19 wasn't what you all were expecting, right? 20 just solidified the pain. I told y'all I have a plan! Stay tuned and I'm sure things will come together..but not in this chapter.

Please review!

/

Chapter 21: Consequences To Actions

Three days had passed since he'd ruined his relationship with Derek and the two had barely spoken, only exchanging (rather pathetic) pleasantries when around their friends.

Spencer walked to and from school, and even if Derek had offered to drive him, he didn't think he could handle being alone with him.

That's exactly what Reid was doing on this windy Thursday afternoon.

He'd decided to take the longer, more secluded path behind some stores so he could have time alone. Stella was worried about him and he didn't feel like being checked up on her constantly.

The wind picked up as he traveled through the back way, whipping his hair around his face-not that it seemed to bother him. He was trying to figure out how to fix things with Derek.

He was so consumed in his thoughts that he didn't notice the three figures surrounding him until it was too late.

"Well, well, well...if it isn't the _genius _who ratted on me!" Darius spoke first, jumping off of his bike.

Reid's head shot up, quickly assessing the situation. _Shit._

"I-I didn't rat on y-you..the t-teacher saw you! I wouldn't have s-said anything, I wouldn't have told!" His anxiety made him stutter, causing Darius' friends to laugh and mimic him.

"Good, 'cause there ain't no one around, and you ain't gonna tell anyone why you're all fucked up tomorrow neither." The leader of the group pushed his finger into Spencer's chest with each word, pushing him against the alley wall.

"P-please, you don't have to do this. I won't tell anyo-" His plead was cut short when the first punch landed on his gut.

He gasped as his back slammed against the brick wall, feeling the wind get knocked out of him.

He didn't know if anything happened directly after that-the shock of the punch (and the power of it) caused little specks of darkness to swim in his vision. He was tempted to just allow it to happen.

Spencer looked up as Darius threw a punch at his jaw, sending the young teenager to the ground. He felt the blood trickle down as he yelped in pain.

He cradled his face for as long as he could before Darius decided that one hit wasn't enough. _Why isn't anyone helping me? _

Multiple kicks from Mark, Jadon, and Darius pummeled his sides, making him scream out in pain. He wasn't sure if he was shouting, or thinking. _My ribs are cracked! Oh god, I think they're cracked!_

"Shut the fuck up!" He couldn't place who said the harsh words, his mind was swimming in pain.

He felt himself lifting up, being pulled by the collar. Darius shoved him back into the wall, retreating footsteps followed shortly after.

Spencer dropped to the ground, unable to move without sharp pains in his side. "Fuck!" He moaned out the curse, no other words able to form. His lips were bleeding, bruises covered a fourth of his face, and he was sure his sides and legs were bruised as well.

He wasn't sure how long it had been since they left, but he knew that laying on the asphalt felt way better than even thinking about moving.

He distantly heard his cellphone ringing but he was too busy fighting to remain conscious to find it. _I'll just close my eyes for a minute..it won't hurt me..they proved against that theory. _ he reassured himself, for once glad of the constant statistics.

As he was drifting off, his cellphone rang again-this time alarmingly loud to his aching brain. He groaned as he moved his arm across the ground, searching blindly for his bag.

Failing to find it, he slowly (and with a copious amount of effort) sat up and crawled to it.

_3 missed calls from: Stella_

He took a rattled breath as he realized he would have to call her back and be picked up.

_Calling: Stella_

"Hello? Spencer?" The woman's voice was rushed and anxious.

"I-I'm here. I-I need to be pi...picked up, I need help." He tried to steady his voice but he was still calming his breathing down.

"What happened? Are you okay?" She questioned him frantically, "Where are you?"

He told her the address, and she insisted he stayed on the phone with her until she found him.

.

.

"Dios mío! Spencer!" He heard her voice before he saw her rushing up to him and bending down.

"Hi Stella." He answered, his entire body hurt but he'd finally worked through the mind fog.

"Who did this to you?"

"I..I don't know." He lied, blackened eyes watering as he met hers.

He could tell she didn't believe him, but she didn't ask again. "We'll speak out that later, you need to go to the hospital."

He shook his head, "I'm fine." He started to stand up and hissed in pain.

"That doesn't sound fine to me." She said pointedly to him, "Do you think you can make it to the car, or should I call an ambulance?"

"It's not that bad..just some cuts and bruises...possibly a few cracked ribs, nothing that won't feel a little better tomorrow morning." He admitted, "The hospital can't do anything for me. I just need some pain medication and rest."

He leaned against her and she took his bag, guiding him to her car. "It looks _bad_, Spencer! What if you're bleeding internally?"

She helped him into his seat and put his seatbelt on before going to her side. "You're going to get checked out, young man. I'm calling your father."

Before he could protest, she started calling William and pulled out her spot on the side of the road.

.

.

.

"The good news is that your ribs aren't broken- one is slightly fractured, the bad news is that you will be extremely sore for many weeks to come.." The doctor said to Stella and Spencer, his father said he'd see them at home.

"Ice packs every hour for the first 2 days, then 3 times daily afterwards?" Spencer asked the doctor.

"You know your stuff..yes, you'll do that along with pain medication. The amount is up to you."

"I think I just need to sleep off some of the pain." He replied, "Do I have to miss school tomorrow or do I just get ice from the nurse?"

The doctor regarded him, "That's up to you as well, you seem to be handling it rather well. You'd probably be okay at school, but I do suggest staying home."

He nodded, _I don't want Stella babying me all day..it would be better to just go to school, but then Penelope will just fuss on me all day.._

"I'll write you up a prescription and send you on your way, don't strain yourself too much in the following weeks and I expect you to have a follow up appointment with your actual doctor."

"He will, I'll schedule it." Stella spoke then, staring at her boss' son.

"Good."

.

.

.

"Are you going to be okay going up the stairs or do you want to camp out on the couch?" Stella asked as she put his bag on the kitchen counter.

"I can make it, I'll have to use the stairs tomorrow at school so I need the practice." He smiled weakly at her, trying not to show how in pain he was- from both the beating and the heartbreak.

"Are you sure you should go?" She nit-picked, "Carrying your bag around can't be good for you."

"It's not that heavy." He replied tiredly, "Plus I only have one fractured rib.." Not that that wasn't a big deal, but he'd gone through worse.

She shook her head, "Spencer, please? Just one day to rest, you really do need it..I know you know that."

He mulled over her plea, seeing the worry creased into her face. Reid sighed, "Okay, okay...just one day though."

She smiled, glad to have one the argument, "Do you want anything to eat or are you going to bed?"

"I'm going to ice my face and rib for awhile and then go to sleep." He answered with a yawn.

She nodded, retrieving ice, bags, and thin towels. "Do you want to tape it around you?"

He shook his head, "No, you're not supposed to wrap them, it could cause too much pressure. But thank you."

"Okay." She paused, clearly wanting to say more as Reid started to retreat to the stairway. "Spencer."

He winced slightly as he faced her, wanting desperately to cradle his aching face. "Yes?"

"I know you know who did it..you should really report them. Or just tell me, at least." Her slight accent met his ears and he sighed.

"I really don't know." He took his first step on the stairs, "Goodnight Stella, and thank you for everything you've done."

She sighed again, "Sleep sound, Spencer. I'll see you in the morning."

He smiled genuinely at her, ignoring the pain it caused, and continued slowly up the stairs.

.

.

Once he'd managed to change into pajamas, he carefully climbed on his bed and placed the ice packs on the worst injuries.

He leaned back on his pillows and closed his eyes. He couldn't hold onto consciousness any longer, falling asleep above the comforter.


	22. Chapter 22

A/N: Do y'all hate me even more for that last chapter? I'm sure you'll be mad with me for a little bit, but I promise things get better! This chapter you'll get to see how everyone reacts to Spencer's terrifying appearance, hope you enjoy.

Also, OH MY GOD. Who watched 'Mr. Scratch'? I'm terrified for what's to come...

Please review!

/

Chapter 22: These Cuts And Bruises

Spencer dragged himself down the stairs, still exhausted both mentally and physically.

His father had checked in on him Thursday night, telling him that he needed to report what happened and "Sue their asses!" William didn't stay long after that, but had Stella send up snacks in case he got hungry.

Friday and Saturday had consisted of what felt like millions of texts from his friends (minus Derek) wondering why he wasn't at school, if he was okay, and if they could hang out. He reassured them any way he could while still declining the offers and lying about the reason he was out.

On Sunday, he was surprised to receive a message from Morgan. It didn't feel as friendly or easy-going as their previous conversations, because, well..it wasn't.

The text told him to 'Please, don't do anything you'll regret. I hope you're okay.' And his heart leapt at the words, hoping that possibly Morgan would begin talking to him again...but he received no other texts in return to his.

Reid still held onto the words he sent in his head, replaying them, replaying his own mantra of: _He cares, Derek does care._

He almost considered staying home again but he knew his friends would freak out if he missed Monday, since he'd already missed Friday. He took his antidepressants along with some pain medication, and was going to the kitchen to fill his empty stomach.

"Morning, Spencer, how are you feeling?" Mrs. Gualardi asked him, filling up his coffee cup.

"Sore." He admitted, not that she wouldn't have known that anyways.

She nodded her head, "I can't convince you to stay home, can I?"

He smiled, "No, sorry."

Stella sighed, "I didn't think so..is Derek going to pick you up or is he still sick?"

Reid almost cringed, he'd lied to her the previous days about why he was walking to and from school, unable to tell her the truth.

"Um..no, no he's not picking me up." He responded sadly.

"Is everything okay between you two?" She questioned.

"Yeah...we're fine." He lied.

"He didn't do _this_ to you, did he?" She gestured to his injuries, "Is that why you won't say who did it?"

"NO! Of course not!" He shouted back quickly, "He wouldn't do that.."

The woman eyed him, "We should get going, I'll take you to school."

Knowing it was pointless (and stupid on his behalf) to argue, he followed her to the car. "Thank you."

.

.

.

Reid sighed as he saw Principal Gideon spot him coming through the front doors.

The man stared at him pitifully, "What in the world happened?"

Spencer shifted his strap carefully, "I..got mugged on my way home from school last Thursday."

The principal shook his head slightly, "Let me print you a pass so you can leave classes early, and go to the nurse anytime you need to...and don't worry about Friday's absence, it's covered."

He obeyed Gideon, following him into his office, passing a shocked-looking Alice.

.

.

Spencer hadn't made eye contact with anyone in his first period class, but he could feel them burning holes in his back.

He hadn't planned on actually using his early dismissal pass at all, but decided not giving Darius and his friends a chance to corner him would be a good idea.

So, he was already halfway to his second period classroom when the bell finally rang.

He once again ignored the stares and whispers directed towards him, growing more and more anxious at the thought of how his friends would react...of how Derek would react. _He won't care..He doesn't even acknowledge you anymore, it's all for show..that text didn't mean anything_.

The pain was suddenly overbearing, causing him to lean against the wall and attempt to regain his composure.

When he saw the hallways clearing he took a deep breath and pushed himself away from the wall, hoping to get to class before the bell rang.

.

His arrival in the class resulted in a deafening silence, he saw both Penelope and Emily's jaws drop.

He closed his eyes briefly, showing the pass to his teacher before walking towards the two.

"Oh..my..god...OH MY GOD!" Garcia yelled, "What happened!"

Prentiss just gaped at him, noting his protective arm around his side.

He winced when he licked his lips nervously, "I got mugged w-when I was walking home on Thursday." He was becoming more firm with the lie, only stuttering a little.

"Don't you ride with Derek?" Emily asked suspiciously.

"You told me that you were sick." Penelope said quietly, joining Prentiss' questioning.

He couldn't meet her eye, "I..n-no..I haven't been lately...and I didn't want to worry you, Garcia."

Emily and Penelope shared a confused look before Garcia asked another question.

"How..how bad is it? You're clutching your side."

He instantly pulled his arm away, "One of my ribs is fractured slightly..but it's not that bad."

_"Not that bad? _Reid, have you looked in the mirror? You're black and blue!" Prentiss interjected somewhat angrily.

Spencer merely shrugged, "I've had worse happen to me."

.

.

David did a double-take as the young teen walked through Ms. Strauss' door, eyes nearly bugging out of his head.

By then, Spencer was getting increasingly annoyed with everyone asking him what had happened, who had done it, and why he hadn't ridden with a Derek that day.

But he mumbled the answers anyways, telling himself that they cared. Luckily for him, Rossi could read his body language and didn't push him too hard.

.

.

He opened the door to the art room quietly, hoping everyone would be too busy on their projects to notice that he was both late and badly battered.

It didn't happen that way.

He informed Mrs. Varahl that he'd arrived, and due to his condition, she didn't count him tardy.

By the time he'd turned to face the class, he saw Allison's reaction towards him, drawing Morgan's attention.

Derek looked away from her, locking on his once best friend. His eyes grew wide at the sight, and completely forgetting the silent treatment they'd given each other (That, even after the break on Sunday, seemed to be continuing) he quickly strode over to him.

Reid watched as he approached him- guilt, anger, and worry plastered across his handsome face.

His heart felt as though it was going to explode, seeing the emotions in the other's eyes brought him back to the days before he'd kissed him.

"What happened to you, Spencer?" He asked, voice quiet and full of remorse.

A million different feelings rushed through his mind at sincerity in his voice, but the hurt and feeling of betrayal was the most prominent. He felt as though he could barely speak, only able to get out a quiet "I was mugged."

He left it at that when the teacher asked them to take a seat, quickly passing Derek.

Morgan remained quiet for the most part, not even striking up a conversation with the people around him as he'd been doing all last week. _He looks broken._ Reid thought to himself.

Reid didn't know what to say either, he hadn't expected Derek to speak to him at all.

Many times throughout the hour consisted of almost-spoken words and worried glances, neither able to say what they were thinking.

.

.

"Why weren't you with Derek?" Will asked after the rest of the group heard his brief (and false) explanation of what had happened.

Morgan tensed, nearly snapping his plastic fork.

Reid recovered faster, "I wanted to walk...it was nice out."

He could tell no one believed him, but they'd been courteous enough not to pry...other than Garcia.

"Derek, why wasn't Spencer with you?" Penelope asked.

His eyes darted towards hers, "He already answered that."

"Did Darius do this to you?" Aaron questioned seriously after looking towards the bully's table.

Spencer's eyes went to it instantly, panicked, an obvious tell. "No."

He felt Morgan's gaze on him, strangling him.

JJ patted his hand and he pulled it away, "You can't let him..or whoever did this..get away with it. That's not fair to you."

A few tears fell, "Telling people how I feel.." He paused, _I didn't mean to say that. _"Ratting people out, trying to stand up for myself...those things don't work well for me."

"They could have killed you, Reid! Is that what you want?" Emily asked harshly, full of protectiveness.

He subconsciously tugged at his sleeves, staring down at the table before his eyes pierced into hers. "..I didn't say that."_ But that is what I wanted, right? It would have been easier that way...better yet? If my attempt had just worked._

"Emily!" JJ exclaimed, softening her voice yet again to speak to Reid. "Spencer, Darius and his friends are assholes. They won't leave you alone until you do something about it."

"I'll go with you to the police station, if you want. Or to Gideon's office." Penelope added sweetly, laying a hand on his arm.

"You're not really giving me an option, are you?" He responded, staring wearily at her.

"No." She replied firmly.

He sighed, "Okay..I'll talk to principal Gideon, but not today..I just cant."

"Good." She replied, "You don't deserve be treated poorly." She fixed a glare on the teen beside him, "By anyone."

Everyone glanced back and forth between the two males, waiting for their reactions.

They were rewarded with a stone-faced Derek, and an uncomfortable looking Spencer.

.

.

Stella picked him up from school that day, he hadn't even waited for an invitation from Derek, not expecting one to be given.

/

A/N: I know some of you are thinking "Wow, Derek is heartless right now." But trust me, there are two sides to every story..which is why I'm still considering writing a version of this story through Derek's POV.


	23. Chapter 23

A/N: I think you'll love/hate this chapter..

Please review!

/

Chapter 23: Old Cycles On Repeat, Different Outcomes

Spencer's mind shifted from thought to thought chaotically as he paced the wooden floor of his bedroom at 10:49 pm on Saturday.

He hadn't written to his mother at all this past week, everything he wanted to say would just worry her...he had to be in a better state of mind, make her think he's okay.

He hadn't read anything in the past week either, his emotions were taking over his focus. He'd never had this happen before, he'd always been alone...the relationship he thought had been building between he and Derek had crumbled.

And it _hurt_. It hurt worse than when his dad left him, worse than every humiliating moment from his old school...and equal to the physical pain he was in now.

Penelope had called him, checking up on him and saying that she could bring over baked goodies. He'd thanked her, but denied the offer knowing that she would eventually want to talk about Derek.

Aaron, David, Emily and JJ had texted him as well, Will included with JJ's message. But nothing from Derek.

He didn't understand, Morgan told him that he was his best friend, that he could go to him for anything, that he _cared _about him...how could that just switch off in an instant?

_It's my fault, not his. _ he thought bitterly to himself, _Nobody can stand me for long...dad left, mom left mentally, eventually everyone else will forget about me too._

He sat on his bed carefully leaning into the pillows, tears flowing freely. _Maybe I should try killing myself again.._

_I promised Derek I'd talk to him if I ever felt like attempting again..._.. He thought before quickly realizing his mistake. _I guess that doesn't apply anymore._

He held onto his rib lightly, breathing deeply as the doctor had told him to. _I shouldn't_ _have called Stella, I should have just laid there.._

He sighed, he hated wanting to die..but sometimes he really hated being alive.

Spencer stood back up, rubbing his arms in a nervous habit, thinking about going downstairs and grabbing a knife since he'd thrown away the razor.

He knew his father probably wasn't awake, and if he was he was probably in his office..he wouldn't know until tomorrow. If he bothered to check up on him.

He opened the door, listening to the utter silence enveloping the house, and sneaking down the stairs.

.

.

He wasn't planning on killing himself at the moment, no, though the thought was welcoming...he just needed a release from his thoughts.

.

.

Reid was actually unsure which drawer held the sharp knives, only ever having used butter knives.

He kept the light off in the kitchen, using his cellphone to help guide him as he rummaged through the drawers.

He stopped when heard his father's voice through the walls, talking loudly to someone over the phone.

He stayed still a moment longer, before deciding to do something he _never_ thought he'd do...talk to his father, tell him he wanted to speak to a therapist, ask for him to be there for him tonight..to tell him to show Spencer that he wasn't as alone as he felt.

He knocked on the office door before creaking it open and poking his head in.

William looked up, confused, before telling the person he was talking to that he'd call back. His desk was cluttered with paperwork and files. His coffee, probably the only thing keeping him running, sitting on the edge.

"What are you doing out of bed? Didn't the doctor tell you to not move so much?" He asked, staring at the puffy-eyed teen in the doorway.

"I..couldn't sleep." He felt childish suddenly, as though he were five years old again. "Could I..talk to you, maybe?"

Mr. Reid's lips parted slightly before gesturing for his son to sit down. "About what? Are you going to tell me who did this to you?"

He sat down, playing with the corners of his father's desk, barely paying attention to his surroundings. "No..I..I'm having a bad week, I just..I need to tal-" He stopped mid-sentence when he realized what he'd done.

The coffee seeped into the papers scattered on William's desk, both boys cursing as they frantically tried to stop the mess.

"GOD DAMMIT, Spencer!" His father shouted, grabbing paper towels to dab the soggy files.

"I'm so sorry! It was an accident!" He replied, cringing away from the screaming. "I'll help you clean it!"

"Do you realize how important these papers were?" He asked furiously, patting the work down, "I was almost finished filling everything out!"

"I said I'm sorry, I'll help you rewrite everything!" He practically begged, eyes burning.

"You've done enough, Spencer. If you weren't here, this never would have happened!" He spoke loudly, waving his arms angrily.

"I didn't know I wasn't allowed in your office...I'm sorry." He said quietly, staring at his dad guiltily.

"I'm not talking about my office, Spencer! I mean _here_! In my house, in my town, in my _life!_"

Reid froze before growing angry himself, "You know I wasn't allowed to stay with mom! She can't even take care of herself!"

William shook his head dismissively, mumbling to himself more than his son, "If you hadn't tried to kill yourself you'd both be home in Las Vegas...sometimes I think maybe it would have been easier if you _had_ died."

Spencer stared bewildered at his father, waiting for an apology, saying that he didn't know what he was thinking saying that, but it didn't come.

He closed his eyes tightly, attempting to regain his composure before fleeing the room.

He slammed the door shut, sobbing as he flung himself at wall in the living room, ignoring the sharp pain from the fracture. He punched the wall in a defeated state, barely making a sound.

He pulled himself away, he had to talk to someone or he _knew _he would kill himself..he couldn't do that, _somebody_ had to care about him.

He swallowed the lump in his throat at the fear of what the person would say when they saw him, he hoped beyond hope that the person wouldn't slam the door in his face.

.

.

.

Reid stood on the porch of the home he'd walked to, almost out of breath and full of fear. He'd been there for nearly five minutes contemplating on knocking, given the time and who was on the other side of the door. His torso ached from the strenuous distance he'd walked, but he grew used to it.

He had received a text from his father on the way there, apologizing and asking him to come home. He merely replied that he'd went to a friends house, not receiving another text in response.

He couldn't stop the crying no matter how hard he tried, and considered just returning home when the porch light went on.

After a moment the door swung open, "Who the hell are you and why are you-" a very confused and tired Derek Morgan paused his sentence once he actually saw the figure on his porch. "Spencer?"

It felt as though time had frozen, neither speaking for a minute.

Spencer stared at him desperately, "You-you told me I could talk to y-you...I hope that offer still stands..even after what I did."

Derek opened his mouth, face filled to the brim with worry. "Come in." He opened the door wider, stepping aside to allow Spencer entrance.

The house was relatively dark as he led him into his bedroom quietly, locking the door behind him.

"I didn't know who to go to..I know.._I know_I ruined everything, and I know you don't care..and I'm sorry..please, I just..I'm sorry." He whispered, staring into the teen's eyes.

Reid continued at a quick pace, "My dad..I spilled his coffee all over his work and we started yelling at each other.. He told me that it would have been better if I died." Morgan instantly scowled.

"And I wanted to.._I want to, I think._" He said truthfully, "This week has been horrible, and it's my fault, I know. And I should not be coming to your house in the middle of the night to talk to you when _I_ made you hate me..I'm just sorry for what I've done, I need you to know that. If I'd never moved here-"

Derek's face softened, sighing and cutting off Reid, "Oh god, Pretty Boy..._I'm_ the one that should be sorry."

Spencer's head shot up at the nickname and Derek sat him on the bed gently.

"_I'm_ the one who pushed you away...I'm the reason you had to go to the hospital."

Reid shook his head, "I never should have kissed you, I thought you liked me in that way..I should have realized that was impossible."

Derek shushed him, "I...I can't do this. " He looked at the pain on Spencer's face before explaining what he meant. "I can't..pretend that I don't like you."

Reid stared at him in wonder, surely he hadn't heard him correctly.

Morgan grabbed Reid's hand tentatively, running his thumb across the palm distractedly. "I..I was scared, Spencer." Tears started to form in the older boy's eyes, "I knew I liked you from the very beginning when I crashed into you, and I _hated _that fact."

Spencer listened intently to every word. "Every time I thought about kissing you, or going on a date with you...it felt like I was telling Carl Buford that he was right, that I _enjoyed _what he did to me because I liked boys."

Spencer protested instantly, "He is a twisted person, Derek. He lied to you to make you feel ashamed of yourself, it made it easier for him to control you."

Derek tightened the grip on Spencer's hand, "I know..I know that now. I'll never forgive him for doing that...and myself for not kissing you back, for ignoring you and making you feel like I didn't care if you died or not."

"I don't expect you to forgive me, and I know that an apology is not enough, but god, Spence...you terrify me, you know that?" He laughed weakly, "To know that I may have never met you, and that I could have lost you _twice_ this week _terrifies _me..it's been barely over a month since I met you and you've totally thrown me for a loop. I can't let you go, I can't let this..whatever this is..to fall apart."

Derek leaned into Spencer's face, planting a slow kiss on his lips. Reid felt the warmth grow within his body, replacing the ache, still processing the words as he kissed back. He didn't even panic at the close contact, or on whether or not he was kissing correctly, all that mattered was that he was with Derek.

Breaking apart, they stared at each other. "I know I've hurt you..bad..but please, please give me a chance to make things right. Treat you how you deserve to be treated, take you on a date..kiss you, and talk to you..just to be the guy that you deserve." Morgan pleaded.

"How about we both take equal blame for what happened?" He joked, still partly out of breath. "And I'd like that."

Morgan intertwined his fingers with his beautiful new..boyfriend. "Good." He replied, smiling.

Spencer smiled, "And I promise not to scare you anymore, to treat _you _like you deserve..because you're amazing, Der, and whether you'll believe it or not...you've changed my life for the better."

/

A/N: You might think that his (Spencer's) mood changed to quickly, but I've had that happen to me before. He still has depression, and getting into a relationship isn't going to change that (Though he could improve), so just keep that in mind when reviewing :)

I hope you're happy with how they finally came together...I'm sure some of you hate William, but who knows? Maybe this is the start of something new! Or, maybe not..


	24. Chapter 24

A/N: What will William say to Spencer? How will Stella react?

This chapter goes till Monday morning, but the next chapter will go back to Sunday (the chapter after that will be Monday again). It seems confusing, but this chapter just shows Mr. Reid's thoughts so it skips around a bit.

Features scenes that _don't_ include Reid! This is like a 'bonus' type chapter since it's not his POV, won't happen often (if at all after this).

Not sure how I feel about this chapter..

Please review!

/

Chapter 24: Time Doesn't Heal All, So Let's Try Talking

William Reid stared after the slammed-door in regret, unable to believe that he'd really just told his son that he wished he were dead.

It's true, he left Spencer and Diana...and he was glad he did so, that kind of life wasn't meant for him.

It's also true that he doesn't quite 'get' his son, but he _does _hold a bit of pride for the smart teen. He honestly can't say that he loves Spencer, it would be a lie..but he can tolerate him at least, most of the time.

_I'm a horrible person. _He thought to himself, hearing the front door slam as well.

He didn't actually want his son to kill himself, no, but he _was _being truthful when he said that it would have been easier without him here.

The moment he got the call from a hysterical Diana, he assumed she was having one of her fits...but then she put the doctor on and he realized he _had _to fly there, otherwise it could look bad.

Seeing Spencer for the first time in so many years, especially under the circumstances, was strange. He'd grown tall, kept his hair long and still wore glasses. But he was the same kid, the same weak and frightened kid that he'd left behind so long ago. _Maybe that was my fault._

But when Spencer woke up and asked why he was there, he responded the same way he'd always talked to him: rather harshly.

He resented, and still resents, the fact that Spencer had to come live with him...he was obliged to take him in because after all, he was his father. But that didn't stop the annoyance in having what was basically a stranger move into his home, use his money, and gain such a close relationship with his house keeper.

Over the weeks he'd lived there, they hadn't spoken much. Not that William minded, he preferred it that way. Their conversations died quickly, neither of them knowing what to say, a first for both of them.

When Stella had called him in a panic, saying that Spencer was in the hospital, he'd thought he'd attempted suicide again. A brief thought that maybe Spencer could stay in a teen mental-health facility crossed his mind, but ended when Mrs. Gualardi told him the real reason.

Spencer had always been a target for bullies, William had tried to get him into sports when he was young to gain a social standing and some muscle, but the bookworm was having none of it. So he got picked on like Mr. Reid assumed he would.

William planned on going against Spencer's most recent attackers, purely because it would be an easy case, but Spencer wouldn't say who did it.

He sent a quick text to his son, apologizing for what he'd said and asking him to come back home but only received one sentence in return. He shook his head and started trying to recover his files. _I'll deal with him tomorrow._

.

.

.

When William walked into the kitchen on Sunday morning, Spencer was sitting at the barstool on his phone laughing happily, and he had to do a double-take.

He cleared his throat, announcing his presence. Spencer flinched and turned to look at him, William noted the instantaneous mood change.

Spencer didn't greet his father as he carried his coffee cup to the sink to wash it out.

William shifted his body back and forth, trying to come up with an apology.

"I'm sorry for what I said last night, I was angry about my paperwork."

The younger Reid halted his movements for a short moment, before ultimately continuing without a word.

"I know you're upset with me, it's understandable..."

Spencer scoffed, "You were angry because you don't want me here, the coffee spilling over just pushed all of your unspoken emotions to the surface." He turned to look at him boldly, for the first time in his life, "Well guess what, _dad,_ I never wanted to come here either."

He saw his son visually calm himself down, "But I'm here, and I'm staying...at least until I graduate. _You_ said that, it was _your _deal."

William nodded, "..You're right. I never wanted you here, but I don't want you dead either, Spencer."

The teen put his cup in the drying rack and retrieved his phone before leaving the kitchen, "Good to know."

.

.

.

Stella and Spencer sat across from each other at 4:30 AM on Monday, both shamelessly eating chocolate chip cookies with milk.

"You're up at this time of night, mijo, something must be bothering you." The older woman stated as she dunked a cookie.

He bit his lip, "I had a rough time last week, you know that..but not entirely because of getting beat up."

He wasn't planning on telling her about everything between he and Derek, "I'd been particularly..depressed..and my dad and I fought.."

She breathed heavily, "What happened?"

"He said some things..he told me that it would have been easier if I had died. I got really mad, and I was panicking so I left for a while. He tried talking to me yesterday morning but he..he just can't take those words back." He told her truthfully, glad that he could talk to her. The only person better to speak to was Derek.

Her face turned to a calm fury, shaking her head. "I'm sorry, Spencer. I promise as long as you're here, and I'm here, you are welcome with me."

"Thank you, you have no idea how much that means to me." He smiled at her, "Your kids are lucky to have you, _I'm _lucky."

.

.

.

Mr. Reid was packing his briefcase in his home office when Stella entered looking angry.

"I'll be out soon, then you can clean this room." He commented, not looking up.

"That's..that's not why I'm here, sir." She tried to contain herself, she knew it wasn't her place to talk to her _boss_ about how he treated his son, but she seriously feared that if he was pushed far enough he would try to kill himself..again.

He looked up now, "What can I help you with, Mrs. Gualardi?"

"Spencer told me about this weekend..I'm sorry if this is inappropriate, but he's hurt by what you said to him.." She started, regretting coming in the first place.

"Not that it's your business, but I've apologized to him." He told her, standing straight.

"Right. Sorry, Sir." She replied, turning to leave.

The man bit his lip, "I can't just act like I love him, Stella. I'm letting him live here, that should be enough."

Stella stopped, facing him. "Fine, don't love him..but don't hate him either." She turned back around and shut the door, leaving him to his thoughts.


	25. Chapter 25

A/N: Thanks for continuing to read :) I'm writing the last chapter right now, I keep putting it off...I think it's because I don't want it to end :(

It's back to Sunday in this chapter.

Please review!

/

Chapter 25: Garcia Knows All

Spencer walked back to his room after 'talking' with his father, he knew he was apologizing (in his own way), but he couldn't accept it. He was angry and hurt, and he really didn't want to talk to him so he was going to get out of the house for a while.

Derek had asked him to come over the night before, so they could hang out alone before having to go back to school. He'd agreed instantly, but now the butterflies were running rampant in his stomach at the thought of what they might be doing.

Not that he didn't want to kiss Derek, he _really_ wanted to, but Morgan had a reputation of being with one person (well, girl) after the next...he was experienced. Spencer wasn't.

His phone sounded and he quickly read the text.

Derek: _What time do you want me to pick you up, babe?_

Reid laughed out loud at the nickname, trying to figure out one to send back.

Spencer: _Whenever you want, I'm ready now...Honey?_

Derek: _I like that one..leaving now!_

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.

.

Morgan and Reid sat in a similar position they'd been in the last time Derek forced Spencer to play video games (like he was doing right now).

"Press A to jump." Derek told him as he ran his fingers through his new boyfriend's hair.

Spencer's eyes closed slightly at the contact, missing the animated monster before him.

"Aw, damn! You almost had him, you'll get used to the controls." Morgan encouraged.

Reid bit down a smile, agreeing with him. "Do you want to take a turn?"

"Sure." He smiled as he clambered off the bed and next to Reid.

While he watched the mixed-teen play, he thought about the time he'd been wrestled to the ground by Derek, which instantly made him redden.

Morgan glanced between the screen and him before pausing the game. "Are you hot? I can turn on the fan."

Reid shook his head, "Oh, no.." He paused, embarrassed at what he was thinking of, "I was just remembering something."

"And what would that be?" He questioned, arm laying on the bed behind Spencer's head.

"Nothing...it's embarrassing." He admitted.

"Aw, come on! You can tell me." He prodded happily.

Reid swished his lips around nervously, "I was just thinking about the first time I came to your house."

Morgan stared at him curiously, "What's wrong with that?"

Spencer smiled a little, "Do you remember when you pinned me down, telling me to apologize?"

He saw a twinge of guilt enter on Derek's face and began talking again, "I..the _real _reason I jumped up so fast is because I really liked you, and we were so close together.."

Derek's eyes widened before he shrunk back slightly, more guilt present in his features.

Reid eyed him, "Are you okay? I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable.."

Morgan shook his head quickly, "No, no it's not that...that day..before we were interrupted by my sister.."

"Yeah?"

"I..I almost told you that I liked you." He traced his fingers along his Pretty Boy's jaw, still bruised, in regret. "I should have told you, I chickened out, for the millionth time. And then that day in the car...I couldn't do it, if I had just told you, you wouldn't have been attacked."

Spencer smiled sadly at him, "You were scared..that's okay. Sure, I wish things could have happened differently, but they didn't..but it's fixed now, right?"

He dropped his hand from his boyfriend's face, "Is it? I can't forgive myself for what I did to you, I don't know how you'll be able to."

"I won't lie and say you didn't hurt me..badly..but I _do_ forgive you." He told him, awkwardness setting in as he patted his hand.

"I'll find a way to make it up to you." murmured Derek as he inched his face closer, "Some day."

Spencer smiled at him, risking a quick kiss on the lips, excitement flowing through him at the touch.

Derek smiled against his lips, gently pushing Spencer onto his back like he'd been when he wrestled him down, this time being careful of his rib.

He paused, making sure Spencer was okay, letting him calm his nerves and breathe deeply. Once he had, he kissed him again, lightly before pulling his face back.

Reid hesitantly reached a hand to Morgan's jaw, bringing him back down to his own. "I'm sorry if I'm a bad kisser..you're the first person I've kissed."

Morgan placed a kiss on his forehead, "You're _not _a bad kisser, but I can give you some more experience." He winked at him.

Spencer leaned his head up, beginning to kiss him again.

Morgan played with his hair as they kissed- something he loved to do. Spencer surprisingly felt no pressure, just happy to be with him again.

_Click! Click!_

Derek and Spencer broke apart at the noise, staring at each other in confusion before swinging their heads to the direction of it.

They jumped up at the sight of a clapping and giggling Penelope Garcia with her phone out, taking photos.

Spencer retreated to one of Derek's walls, eyes large with fear.

"Garcia!" Derek yelped, quickly ushering her inside before shutting (and locking) his door.

"I thought you locked it!" Spencer asked him accusingly, eyes darting to Penlope's worriedly.

"I thought so too!" Derek turned his attention to his female best friend seriously. "Penelope, delete those photos."

"I _knew_ you two would make up, even though you told me nothing happened...oh my god! I'm so excited!" She rambled happily.

"Please delete the photos!" Reid asked, tears ready to fall as he made his way to Morgan's side.

She chewed her lip before relenting, "Oh, _fine_. But I think they turned out good.."

"How did you get up here without me knowing anyways?" Derek asked her as she plopped onto his bed.

She shrugged, "Momma Morgan let me in." She wiggled her eyebrows, "Said you two were 'hanging out' up here...I decided to be quiet."

Derek shook his head, not having it in him to be upset with her. "I swear I locked the door.."

Spencer felt exposed while Penelope grinned at him, he drew his arms to his chest in comfort after he sat on one of Morgan's chairs.

"You two are so freaking cute!" She exclaimed, looking at the both of them bashfully unable to maintain eye contact with her.

"We're not ready to tell anyone yet, so you have to keep this a secret." He informed her, sitting down as well.

"How long has this been going on? Is that why you weren't talking, did you two break up?" She questioned them.

"Only a day, so leave us alone!" Spencer told her bitterly for breaking up their time alone.

"Then why weren't you two speaking last week? We all noticed..you suck at acting by the way."

Spencer glanced at Derek before looking down, still obviously (and rightly) hurt by the events from the week previous.

Morgan watched him sadly, "I was being an idiot.."

She folded her arms, "What did you do to Spencer?"

"It doesn't matter, Garcia." Reid replied surely.

"Okay...but I can't believe you didn't tell me you too finally got together, Derek!" She switched subjects. "We tell each other everything! You've been gushing over him since the first day.."

_Not wverything._ Spencer thought, no one tells anyone _everything._

He registered her other sentence, "You told _her _you liked me?" He looks towards Derek somewhat angrily.

Morgan shook his head, "No. She figured that out on her own."

"What can I say? I have a gift..I knew you liked Derek too, Spencey." She grinned. "I know all about you!"

"You do?" He asked queasily, staring at Morgan in panic, _What else has she figured out?_

"Of course I do, you're not the only smart one around here." She smiled again even though she saw the nervousness.

"What exactly do you know?" Derek responded quietly, okay _now_ Garcia was a little but curious about this mood switch.

Her eyebrows drew together, a frown placing itself on her face as she looked at both of them. "Is there something you don't want me to know?"

_She doesn't know anything._ The teen thought with a sigh of relief. Derek stared at him, eyes telling him to tell her the reason he moved here.

Spencer shook his head slightly and Morgan nodded while frowning resignedly.

"Okay, obviously there _is_ something I don't know." She stated matter-of-factly. "I was just joking when I said I knew everything..I told you that I never looked far into your profile."

He looked down before sharing a glance with his boyfriend and back up to Penelope's questioning eyes, "..I never told you the reason I moved here."

Her face scrunched up before she nodded slowly, "Tell me, then."

.

.

Garcia hugged Spencer tight, much to his disapproval and Derek's amusement.

Reid didn't cry this time as he told the story, but Penelope had.

"I never even noticed the scars..." She said distantly, "Oh, honey..why didn't you tell us?"

They were crowded on Derek's bed talking, "I..I couldn't."

She nodded and patted his hand, grateful that he'd come into their lives and especially into her best friend's. "I'm glad you told me now."

Both he and Morgan smiled, "I am too."

/

A/N: Yeah, I know Penelope was a little over zealous in this chapter- taking pictures of them, but in my head she was already going to delete them on her own, she just wanted to tease the boys.


	26. Chapter 26

A/N: Yay! Moreid has been established, and they're not that great at keeping secrets..considering how intuitive the group is. Hope y'all enjoy it! The story will end soon (34 chapters total), not quite yet but it's obviously not going to go on forever...but it won't be the last you see of me and Moreid!

I'm sorry I haven't replied to many reviews for the past few chapters, I've been busy! But I've read each one of them and I appreciate y'all so much!

Please review!

/

Chapter 26: Psst...That Secret Isn't A Secret

Reid bit his lip, smiling at a text from Derek, drawing the curious attention of Emily and Garcia.

He'd been on his phone most of the period, though he still did his work.

He knew Prentiss suspected what was going on based off the conversation they'd had earlier in the principal's office while waiting to report the attack on Reid.

Before they'd been told that the police were reviewing the store's security tapes so they could put a positive identification on the attackers, Emily had been not-so-subtly hinting about their new-found relationship.

So, he looked up from his phone to see the girls waiting for an explanation as to why he was so happy, but he gave none as he locked the phone. Garcia winked at him.

.

.

He and Morgan had agreed to keep the relationship a secret because of various factors such as them both being new to it, the social dynamic of the school, and just because it was fun to have a _happy_ secret of their own.

They sat in their art class, both working on their clay sculptures. They had to create animals to cook and glaze, which was probably Spencer's favorite project yet.

They were sitting closer to each other, not extremely so, but close enough to make Reid's heart flutter and face burn. It had only been three days since they'd kissed (for the second time) and Spencer was definitely not used to the attention he was receiving from his boyfriend.

If he were honest with himself, it scared him to death. But it also made him happy that he had somebody to love and talk to about anything.

.

.

Spencer grinned at Derek as the older teen took his bag for him and placed it on the diner's table, "Thank you."

Morgan smiled back, eyes twinkling, ignoring his other friends. "No problem."

The group exchanged amused glances, JJ and Emily wanting so badly to squeal "Aw!" at them, but not _really_ wanting to embarrass Reid.

"So..what have you two been up to lately? You're awfully chipper today, come to think of it, you were yesterday too..and Monday!" Garcia teased, earning chuckles from a few of the members.

Derek quirked his eyebrows at her, "Are we not allowed to be happy for no reason? It's been a good week so far."

"Good indeed..." Rossi started before being interrupted by the waitress.

"What'll it be today?" She asked the group, eyes focused on her notepad.

The rambled off their orders, all of them actually eating a meal rather than sweets.

Morgan bumped his knee into Reid's, making the other smile sweetly with his eyes diverted to the table.

"So are you two ever planning on telling us? Officially, that is." Will asked, staring at the seemingly-preteen lovebirds.

"Tell you what?" Morgan asked innocently, accusingly.

Emily rolled her eyes, along with most of their other friends. "Oh please, we're not stupid."

Spencer sat back against his seat, _Of course they know._

"You're not at all surprised?" Derek asked them. "That I'm..dating a guy?"

"I'm more surprised that you're _dating_, period." Rossi commented, "We've been trying to get you into a relationship for years."

"I guess we were just setting him up with the wrong gender." Aaron laughed slightly, a look of approval found it's way to Derek's gaze-leaving him feeling oddly reassured.

The half-white teen nodded before JJ spoke, "Are you two going to be 'official' at school?"

Reid looked at Morgan then, both were hesitant about that idea. "We don't know.." Spencer said, the first sentence he'd said in a while, still feeling uncomfortable talking about this. _How will I be okay with it at school if I'm scared when I'm around my friends? _He asked himself.

"I don't exactly have the reputation of dating a guy...who knows how people would take it?" Derek added, the group quieting as their waitress came back bearing food.

"Thank you, ma'am." Spencer smiled at the retreating woman.

"So, back to our conversation.." Penelope said in between bites, "Who gives a shit what they think at school?"

"I do." - "I do." Derek and Spencer said in unison, looking at each other briefly.

"Sure, people will probably talk at first..but then something else interesting will happen." Aaron told them, "You've all calmed down about me and Haley."

Spencer nodded in agreement before shaking his head, "I'd rather not be talked about for any amount of time.."

Derek chuckled, "Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing...I want everyone to know that I'm yours, and you're mine."

Reid blushed, and the girls gushed over him.

.

.

.

The next day Derek walked Spencer to his first period class, stopping in front of the doorway on the opposite side of the hall.

They leaned against the lockers, "I'm glad Darius and his friends are never coming back here..makes me feel a little better leaving you."

Reid smiled at him, "Same here..the kids in there aren't as bad since they left either."

"Good." Derek told him before biting his lip and looking at Spencer's.

Spencer watched him, contemplating in his head if the public display of affection would be a bad thing. He decided that he didn't care, inching closer to his boyfriend.

Derek grinned, giving him a not-so-quick kiss after making sure no teachers were watching (There was a strict no-kissing policy, but they weren't sure if the teachers actually followed it). "See you in third period."

Spencer walked into the classroom hesitantly, noticing the other students staring at him in fascination.

"Did you just kiss _Derek Morgan?" _ Charlotte (A red head that sat in the back of the class) asked in shock.

He still didn't like any of them, and didn't think it was right of them to suddenly stop being mean because the bullies were gone, so he merely replied a 'yes' and sat down.

.

.

.

By lunch time, news of the couple had spread around the school, and the two could feel them watching.

"Jesus, this is ridiculous. It's not like we're the first gay couple at this school." Derek commented towards his friends, unsure of himself with all of the attention.

"I thought you wanted everyone to know?" Jennifer asked him with sympathy.

"I do, but people keep telling me that there's a rumor going around about me and 'some skinny guy'...It's pissing me off." He admitted, rubbing his hand over a just-as-weary Spencer's.

"It'll get better." Emily promised them, sending a glare to a few onlookers.


	27. Chapter 27

A/N: The group knows about Derek and Spencer, and this chapter they'll learn a little bit more about our dear main character..

Please review!

/

Chapter 27: Who's Bennington?

The group was settled in Rossi's mansion of a home, all cozily sitting on the couches facing each other. They'd hung out with Kevin and Haley multiple times (Happily, they were good people), but they always liked meeting up together without their estranged significant others.

"I can't believe you really said that to her, David!" Emily shouted laughingly, "She's going to report you!"

"Hey, all I did was ask her if she wanted to have coffee sometime after graduation." He replied.

JJ shuddered, "Why would you want to date Strauss anyway? She'd probably bite your head off."

He winked at his blonde friend, "Maybe I'm into that kind of stuff."

"Ah, eew!" Derek groaned, shifting uncomfortably, "That's just painful to think about."

Spencer shook his head, "You have a weird sense of humor."

David laughed, "She's hot! Plus..I like making you all squirm."

"You're making me want to throw up, _that_ is what you're doing." Garcia told him, lips curled in disgust.

"Yeah, yeah..you have your tastes and I have mine." He waved dismissively, not the least bit offended by their reactions.

"That's probably why you're getting an A in her class, she totally wants you dude!" Will exclaimed, making Aaron laugh.

"I did that all on my own, man. I'm going to be a writer." He smiled.

Spencer grinned, "Authors are a great contribution to society."

"Well, you know you have at least six people buying your first book." Hotch told him, patting his shoulder.

The joy was evident on his face, "Has anyone else decided what they want to do once they get out of here?"

Aaron frowned slightly, "I'll probably become a lawyer."

Reid scrutinized his face, "But what do you really want to do?"

Hotch looked up at him with a hint of surprise, "I never really thought about it, my future was planned from the very beginning...I _do _want to help people, but I don't think becoming a lawyer is my idea of doing that...no offense to your dad."

Spencer laughed, "No offense taken, I don't exactly look up to him."

Aaron nodded, and Penelope spoke. "I'm still figuring out where to put my skills to use."

"Maybe you could work for the CIA or something." Prentiss suggested, "That might be cool."

"Could you really imagine me working for the _government?_ Yeah, right."

JJ laughed, "That would be a sight to see.."

Will laughed too, "Hey, I still can't see you becoming a teacher, babe..I know you're patient, but a room full of second graders? I couldn't handle that."

JJ shook her head, "You and Derek are going into the academy and are going to have to deal with criminals, but you can't handle nine year olds?"

"That's a different thing all together.." Derek laughed.

"What about you, genius?" Will asked Spencer.

This questioned stopped him, he never really knew what profession he'd go into..he'd thought about being a professor like his mother, but the idea never really manifested itself in his heart.

"I..I don't really know. I want to get a Ph.D, and various other degrees..keep my options open, you know?"

Spencer's phone started ringing then, drawing his attention away from thoughts about the future.

_Bennington. _Showed up on the screen, and Spencer's heart jumped anxiously, thinking something must be wrong.

"Who is it, Pretty Boy?" Derek asked curiously at the look on his face.

"Bennington. I need to answer it." He stood up, making his way to another room, "Excuse me."

The friends looked at Derek in confusion, even Garcia (She'd never learned the name of the institution).

"Who's Bennington?" David asked, to which Derek merely shook his head, that was up to Spencer if he wanted them to know.

Reid came back in fifteen minutes later smiling and sitting back down next to Derek.

"Is she okay?" Morgan asked, knowing she had to be based off his partner's toothy grin.

"Yeah, she just wanted to call and see how I was doing." He replied, not taking notice of the others listening. "She snuck off to the phone during bingo." He laughed.

Morgan smiled and wrapped his arm around his shoulders, "Good!"

"Who's okay?" Prentiss asked, voicing what everyone else was thinking.

Penelope looked at her friend expectantly, hoping he would tell everyone.

He looked around the group, "My..uh..mom."

There was still confusion hanging in the air, no one quite sure what to ask.

Spencer breathed in heavily, "She's..she's in a..mental hospital, a sanitarium."

He saw looks of sympathy come his way, and he looked down.

"Is she..okay?" Jayje asked, no one missing the underlying question- _Why is she in there?_

Derek kissed his temple, encouraging him.

"She's in there because of me." He said.

"Spencer, you know that's not true." Derek responded instantly, upset that he still believed he was the reason.

Reid smiled at him, "I wasn't finished."

Morgan nodded at him. "I was the reason she finally decided to check herself in. She's a paranoid schizophrenic.."

He watched their faces, each one staring back at him.

"How long has she been there?" Hotch asked, sympathy in his tone.

"A, uh, little less than a week before I moved here." He answered, and the teens recalled the 'birthday conversation fiasco'.

"Is that why you don't..or didn't..like celebrating your birthday?" Emily asked him, thinking that would make a lot of sense.

"Partly." He sighed, staring at JJ intently before he decided to tell them. "I've had a lot of bad memories on my birthday, and the last one...I tried to kill myself."

Jennifer recoiled, drawing her arms to her chest at the revelation. She closed her eyes as Will hugged her.

They'd all spoken to him, minus JJ, their shock and apprehension expressed in their words.

"..My sister killed herself three years ago." JJ told the skinny teen, her voice both angry and sorrowful.

"I know..I'm sorry, Jayje." He told her softly.

She shook her head, "It's okay." She looked at him with tears in her eyes, "Please..don't try it again..you don't know how badly you'll hurt those who love you."

He nodded, having nothing else to say.

"Why didn't you tell us sooner?" Prentiss questioned sadly.

He gave her a small smile, "I've never been very good at trusting people...but I trust all of you...I was scared..and ashamed."

She nodded, giving him a quick smile back.

"..I saw your scars, when we threw you the birthday party." Aaron told him absently before questioning himself out loud. "I didn't say anything..should I have?"

Reid looked at him, "I didn't think anyone had seen them..other than Derek, of course..but then, he was the only one who knew."

The group sat there silently, each reflecting in their own thoughts before later striking up another conversation.


	28. Chapter 28

A/N: Hey y'all! This chapter is a bit of Derek and Spencer's progressing relationship..(re-meeting Mrs. Morgan as a couple, hanging with friends, etc). It goes over a course of 2-3 weeks (each ... Showing a different day/time). I hope y'all like it. 3

Please review!

/

Chapter 28: Comfortability

As Spencer, Emily, and Penelope exited their second period classroom, the male of the group was grinning unexpectedly across the hall.

"What are you so happy about?" Prentiss asked playfully, staring at him in an amused confusion.

Spencer shook his head as an answer, walking up to his reason for smiling.

Derek smiled when he reached him, pulling him in for a hug.

"How did you get over here? Your class in on the other side of the school." He asked after pulling back, the girls standing behind them. The boys usually just met in their art class.

"I got out early, wanted to walk my baby to class..you got a problem with that?" The teen replied, chuckling.

"Ugh, you two are so sweet it makes me want to throw up." Emily joked, Garcia smacking her on the arm in return.

Spencer reddened, and Derek laughed again. "You're just jealous." She stuck her tongue out at him before pulling Garcia away.

"Let's go before we're late." Derek told him, slipping his fingers in between his boyfriend's.

Reid smiled softly at the gesture, trying not to notice the eyes that focused on their hands.

Most people hadn't spared a glance since they'd grown used to seeing the couple being low-grade affectionate- even the teachers.

But there were, of course, those who leered and gave disgusted glances their way, but every time Morgan noticed he would pull Reid closer- a 'fuck you' to those who were bothered.

And that gave Spencer more confidence in public, knowing that Derek didn't care if people didn't like who he was with- because he did.

"You're quiet, everything okay?" Morgan informed him as the stepped closer to the hallway they met in.

"Perfect." He responded, smiling up at his concerned other and drawing him closer.

.

.

.

Derek hadn't formally told his mom or sisters about his new relationship, though he suspected they figured it out on their own, but he decided (along with Spencer) that they would tell them today.

They sat on the couch, Reid leaning into his side and fitting his head into the crook of Morgan's neck.

They were watching an action flick that Derek considered one of his favorites when Fran walked through the front door.

She paused at the sight of them cuddling on the sofa before breaking into a smile, "So..."

Derek untangled himself from Spencer and pulled him off the couch. Reid tried to relax his nerves and they stepped closer to her.

"Momma, this is Spencer...my boyfriend." He informed her, smiling, though with a pinch of anxiousness.

"I know, silly." She responded nicely, sitting down on the love seat across from the couch where they'd returned to. "How long have you two been dating? Not since the first time I met you, Spencer?"

He took a small breath, but Derek replied for him, "No, momma..a couple of weeks."

She nodded, "You're looking better, Spencer. Your bruise is almost gone...I'm sure Derek has been fussin' all over you."

Reid let out a small laugh, "Yeah, he has..."

Derek glowered, "It's not like I'm babying him."

Spencer smiled toothily as Fran sent a knowing look in his direction.

"Hey, Spencer." Desirée greeted as she and Sarah walked into the living room. "I didn't know you were here!"

He nodded towards them as the crowded him on the couch. He still wasn't comfortable with how close Morgan's sisters would get to him, and looked to him for help.

Derek smiled before huffing at his younger sisters, "Get off of my boyfriend!" He pulled him back by the wrist.

Sarah raised an eyebrow, "I knew it! You owe me 25 bucks, Desi!"

.

.

.

"Your turn, Jayje!" Aaron called while returning to his seat at the local bowling alley they'd gathered at after a long day at school, having just scored a 'strike'.

She stood to retrieve her pink ball, she claimed it was her lucky color (though she was currently in last place).

David and Spencer were tied for first and JJ last, the rest somewhere in between.

"I thought you weren't any good at sports?" Rossi asked, exasperated that he wasn't winning as usual.

Spencer quirked an eyebrow at him, "You consider bowling a sport?"

Penelope laughed when the Italian teen mumbled a 'Yes.'

"Nice job, Jerau!" Prentiss joked after seeing her hit two pins.

JJ stalked over to her, "Ha. Ha. So funny!" She sat and sipped harshly on her soda, "I'm just having a bad night."

Will poked her, "No offense, Hon..but every time we bowl you're having a 'bad night'."

She squinted her eyes at him in fake annoyance, "Well, let's see how you do then!"

Derek grinned at the scene before him, nudging Spencer in a 'get this' sort of way. Reid looked back at him in forced amusement.

They played three more games that night (Two wins to Rossi, one to Reid, and one to Prentiss) before heading to their respective homes.

Derek and Spencer lagged behind, standing outside of the bowling alley under the dingy light in the dark night.

Reid stared at his boyfriend, a twinkle in his eye at the warm smile on his face.

"You're so beautiful, you know that?" Derek asked him, thumbing his jawline.

Spencer blushed and looked down, "You're the beautiful one, not me."

Morgan shook his head, "Look at me."

Reid didn't pick up his eyes, "You don't have reassure me of anything. I know what I am, and it's not beautiful...I don't know what you see in me."

"Spencer!" Morgan chastised, "What brought this on?"

The lean teen looked off to the side, "..I heard some people at school talking, comparing me to your previous flings." He looked at his boyfriend, "They're right. I'm not good enough for you, I've seen the girls you've been with..they're beautiful..you're beautiful, not me."

Morgan sighed and put his hands on the self-conscious teen's shoulders, "Okay, first? _You_ are not a 'fling'. Second, the people at school don't matter. _I _think you're beautiful, and funny, and weird, and adorable..and I love you."

Spencer's eyes widened, "You _love _me?"

Derek smiled faintly, only then realizing what he'd admitted. "Of course I do." He felt the tension melt away from Reid's shoulders at his answer.

"I love you too, Derek." He replied, eyes slightly watery as he hugged him.


	29. Chapter 29

A/N: Guess who's back (back), back again? Yep, it's me with another chapter!

Please review!

/

Chapter 29: Progress

It was a rare Sunday that he wasn't out with his friends, or with Derek alone, that Spencer found himself sitting across from his father, the man he'd barely spoken to in the past 3 weeks.

He'd actually talked to his friends about the fight between he and his father, and they made sure he knew that he wasn't alone. Which was incredible..he'd never truly had anyone caring for him, he'd always been the caregiver.

He chewed on his pop tarts and thought about how far he'd seemed to come since moving here, and he really believed that this was the best thing that could have happened to him...even under the circumstances that they unfolded in.

He was happy.

His mom was doing well, and he was going to visit her during the summer before going off to college.

His friends were glad to have him around, and he was glad they were there as well.

Derek (along with the rest of the gang) protected him, and helped him to see a side of life that he'd never dreamt he'd experience.

His bruises were gone, and his rib was slowly getting better- only the memory would last, but that was to be expected.

The bullying hadn't necessarily stopped, he was still picked on, but it was no where near as bad as before. He found _that_ people seemed to respect him more since he and Derek started dating (that, or they feared Morgan would beat them).

Stella remained a confidant, a friend in the lonely house that he now called home. He wanted to tell her just how much he appreciated her..._I should make dinner for her, for once..I bet she'd love that!_

He smiled at the thought of serving her, making her sit down while he got her seconds..ushering her away and swatting her helpful hands.

He thought about the many conversations he'd had with her, about Derek, his father, mother, friends..her life, her kids...just everything.

She helped him when he was having bad nights- nights where he considered suicide yet again- telling him old stories, saying that things would get better, that they were already getting better (which was very true).

He loved her, a strange thing for him to admit to himself, for he loved very few people in his life, and as long as she would want to- he would talk to her...but he knew deep down that he still needed to get a therapist.

"Spencer?" William questioned, wondering if his son was beginning to ignore him again.

Reid looked up, realizing he'd zoned out. "Yes?"

"I've thought a lot about what I said to you a couple weeks ago, as I'm sure you have too.." He started.

Spencer nodded slightly, curious to what his father was going to say.

"What I said..was uncalled for, and I truly do mean it when I say I'm sorry." He looked at him forcefully, "I never even tried to help you get better, hell, I don't even know if you're taking your medications...so I'm going to start now.."

Spencer stared at him in surprise, "What do you mean?"

"I want you to see a therapist. I'm not the right person to speak to, and I never will be, I know you understand that-you're a genius." He continued sincerely.

Reid understood what his father was saying, _I don't love you, but I want to help you._ He thought that that was good enough, he didn't love his father either..but the fact that he was willing to help him? That made him feel better than he ever had in his father's presence.

He nodded slowly, "Thank you.." Pausing, "That's what I was going to ask you about the night we fought."

He saw a slight look of guilt on William's face before he smiled briefly at his son, "I have a doctor set up, you can choose the schedule."

.

.

.

Three days later Spencer and Derek sat in the elder's truck in the parking lot of Reid's new therapist.

Spencer was going to walk to the building, it wasn't far and he was feeling pretty good, but Derek had insisted that he be the one to take him to his first appointment.

He had smiled at his boyfriend in an annoyed fashion that night in Morgan's house, saying that _It really will be okay, it's not your job to take me everywhere _and Derek replying that he knew that, and that he didn't care.

Fran had found out quickly about the couple, before they'd come out to her, saying she knew they'd be together before the couple themselves knew... The woman tended to agree with Spencer on a lot of the teens' 'fights', but she sided with her son on that particular argument.

He looked at his boyfriend now, who was fiddling with the radio. "You ready, Pretty Boy?" The teen asked, staring back.

He smiled and nodded, "You don't have to wait around, the session ends in an hour."

Morgan nodded, "Alright. I'll pick you up at 5:30 on the dot." He grinned before kissing Reid on the cheek and picking his messenger bag off the floor for him.

Spencer took it gratefully, opening the door before kissing him once more. "See you in a little while..go eat something."

Morgan agreed to eat, "Okay, good luck baby."

.

.

"Spencer Reid? Dr. Branson is ready to see you now." The receptionist informed him from her station, throwing him a kind smile.

He wiped off his glasses and rearranged his bag before thanking and following her.

She gestured her arm to the office, leaving him to open the door. He looked after her for a second, taking a deep breath and knocking on the solid wood barrier.

"Come in." The scratchy male voice flowed through the door, Spencer did as told.

Spencer guessed the doctor was in his sixties, he had graying hair and laugh lines characterizing his smile. "Hello, I'm Doctor Branson." He stood up to shake the teenager's hand.

Reid stared at the hand for a second, smiling awkwardly at the man. "I'm Spencer Reid...I'm sorry, I don't shake hands."

The laugh lines creased in as he smiled again, "Not a problem, go ahead and take a seat."

He nodded and sat down in his designated chair, the doctor doing the same.

"So, I didn't get much information from your father about the situation..though I received your medical records and a brief recap, but I'd like to hear from you why you're here."

Reid fiddled with his hands. _Time to tell another person.._

"I..I tried to kill myself because I was..am..sometimes..depressed." He was unsure of what the man would think of his explanation, looking up nervously.

The doctor stared back at him, slowly nodding and seemingly interested in the response.

"You didn't stay long in the hospital after your attempt, I assume you were supposed to have a check up with a doctor here, but you haven't..why?"

"I didn't want to stay in the hospital, I don't like them.." He admitted, "I never went to a check up because I wanted to just put the attempt in the past..pretend it never happened, but I couldn't do that if I tried harder..too much changed after it."

"You can't just act as though it never happened. It did and you have to make it your responsibility to never want to end up in that situation again."

He nodded, looking away somewhat ashamed.

"Tell me what was going through your mind that day.."

.

.

.

"Hola mijo, how did your appointment go?" Stella questioned him as he and Derek returned to the house, Morgan picking up an apple to eat.

"It was good. I think it will help, in time..especially since I've already been getting better." He told her with a smile as Derek half-hugged him, leaving his arm around the lean boy.

Mrs. Gualardi smiled softly at the couple before her eyes flicked to Spencer's. "That's fantastic, Honey! You have a great support system." She nodded to Morgan.

"We all care about him, even if he didn't believe it in the beginning." Derek informed her happily after swallowing.

Reid smiled inwardly, "Thank you for being a part of that system, Stella."

She patted his arm before wiping down the counters. Spencer remembered that he wanted to cook for her.

"Hey, Stella...what's your favorite meal?" He asked, trying to remain inconspicuous but failing miserably.

She eyed him, "Chicken Fried Rice, why?"

He shook his head, "Just wondering. Derek and I are going to go do homework up stairs."

She nodded, before yelling after them teasingly, "That better be all you're doing!"

Derek laughed loudly as he climbed the stares, glancing towards a burning red Spencer.

"Come on, baby boy..let's go relax."


	30. Chapter 30

A/N: Here's a short little baby chapter, it's a letter of Spencer's to his mother about Derek, and Diana herself. You'll notice that Spencer kind of jumps around while writing letters, because _I _do that.

Please review!

/

Chapter 30: I Just Wanted You To Know

"Dear Mom,

Tomorrow is the one month anniversary of mine and Derek's relationship, and I think I'm happier than I've ever been. You know from what I've sent you previously that it wasn't an easy one to get into, and that I haven't always been as comfortable with it, as expected, but I think I'm actually handling things correctly.

I love him, I do. I hadn't told you that yet, I wasn't sure if I could feel it at this age, let alone at all...even though you've always told me I could.

There are so many lessons you've taught me, both directly and indirectly, that will stay with me forever. I hope you know that I appreciate you, and that my choosing to help you wasn't out of pure necessity- but love. Do not feel guilty for our experiences, and my experiences...I know you do.

You've taught me that a loved one will love you for who you are, and Derek does. He, for whatever reason, likes myself and my quirks. I am the same for him, I thought you'd appreciate knowing that.

I talk to him about you all the time, he wants to meet you after we graduate- when I go to visit you this summer. I told him I would ask you how you feel about it (which is what I'm doing now). Though, I informed him that I would want time alone with you first...I miss you every day and I can't wait to see you again.

I love reading your letters, and I hope you liked the pictures of my friends in the last letter (they were very excited to take it, and send a loud 'hello' to you). I know you can't write back often, so I'll keep mentioning it until I hear back, which is hopefully soon.

Your birthday is coming up soon, and I know you hate when I remind you of your age, so I won't do so this time. But I'm wishing you an early 'Happy Birthday' already. I plan to call you as soon as I can on your day, so you better tell your doctors that I won't take 'no' for an answer!

Do they do anything special for birthdays? I really hope they do, you deserve it. Whatever you plan that day, have fun and remember that I wish I was there with you.

How is your friend Richard? You haven't written about him in the past few letters, I've been wondering if he was okay.

School is going great by the way, Darius and his friends are still suspended indefinitely, which has made Derek and my friends considerably more at ease when they're not around me.

It's funny that they act as though they're my body guards, even Stella does it. I never thought I needed that much protection, but I can't say it doesn't feel reassuring. I hope you feel just as safe.

Oh, I tried to make Stella chicken fried rice! I nearly set the kitchen on fire in the process, she ended up having to help me...it tasted really good. It was nice to make her happy, it reminds me of being with you.

I got Derek a present I'll think he'll like, I tell you what in the next letter (I don't want to jinx myself...not that I believe in such things).

It's almost midnight now, and I really should go to sleep so I can be fully awake tomorrow.

I can't wait to tell you how everything goes. I love you so much mom.

~ Spencer."


	31. Chapter 31

A/N: Hey guys, this chapter is a Spencer/Derek date! So hopefully it comes out fluffy :)

Please review!

/

Chapter 31: One Month

Reid watched the clock in the kitchen as it slowly ticked, waiting for Morgan to arrive.

It's been exactly one month, seven hours, twenty-two minutes, and twelve seconds since Derek and Spencer became a couple.

He knew Derek didn't know how long they'd 'been together' down to the exact second, but the teen had been hinting at wanting to celebrate their small milestone, considering that neither of them had ever reached it before.

Reid wasn't particularly 'smart' when it came to romantic anniversaries, but decided that he wanted to buy Morgan a little something regardless of what the social-standard was.

He played with the box that held the ring he'd had engraved for the boy, he knew Derek was somewhat fond of 'man jewelry' as he called it, and hoped that he would appreciate it. (and hoped that Morgan wouldn't think he was trying to propose to him).

The two still had to attend school, it was a Tuesday after all, so whatever plans the more muscular of the pair had created would have to wait till later.

Stella smiled at him, "I bet he'll love it."

He looked up at her, happy for the reassurance. "I hope so."

The doorbell rang, signaling the gift-recipient's arrival. Spencer had to stop himself from racing to the door, collecting himself before turning the handle.

Derek grinned sappily at him from beyond the threshold, handing a box of chocolate-covered coffee beans to him, "Happy One Month, baby. I thought you might like these."

Reid's smile grew, rolling his eyes to mess with his boyfriend before accepting the candy and ushering him inside.

He gave him a small kiss, "Thank you, I bet they taste great."

Morgan stole another kiss, saying that that was all the 'thanks' he needed.

"I have a gift for you, but I'm not sure when to give it to you." He said sweetly, unsurely.

Morgan laughed softly at his shyness, something the teen had yet to outgrow around him. "You didn't have to get me anything...and we aren't technically celebrating until tonight."

Spencer gave him a skeptical glance, "Well, I wanted to.." He smirked, "I could always take it back..."

Derek laughed, eyes wide as he waved his hands back and forth. "No, no! No need to do that, Pretty Boy."

Reid laughed along, "Alright.." He kissed his cheek and grabbed his bag, "Tonight, then."

.

.

.

"I never thought I'd see Aaron in a long-term relationship, let alone _you_ Derek..just saying." Emily told them during the group's conversation of relationships.

Spencer, Derek, and Aaron all let out an offended "HEY!" At the comment.

Will and JJ laughed together, Penelope joining in. "Why are _you _offended, Boy Genius?" The plump blonde questioned.

Spencer pouted slightly, "Well, he's _my_ boyfriend...I'm a part of that 'impossible' phenomenon."

Morgan glowed with pride as he grinned at Spencer before sticking his tongue out at Prentiss.

"Why do you not see me in a relationship?" Hotch demanded.

Rossi laughed at the irritated teen, sharing a look with Em as she answered. "I didn't intend for it to come out like that..you're just so busy, I can't imagine you having time for one."

He nodded agreeably, "I can understand your view..but it's wrong in my case."

She snickered, "Obviously. My dearest apologies."

The black-haired teen laughed mockingly, "Yeah, you're so funny." His voice projected anger, but the smile let on his true feelings.

Spencer smiled at the table, _Who kn__ew it could be this easy...or fun, to talk about relationships_?

.

.

.

Morgan dropped Reid back off at home after school, telling him to dress up but casual at the same time, and that he'd be back by 5:30 pm.

Spencer have him a curious glare at the mysterious plans but gave him a kiss on the cheek before heading inside.

Mrs. Gualardi greeted him almost instantly, knowing he was going out with Derek later on and wanting to know what they'd be up to.

"He won't tell me where we're going, or what we're doing. He just told me to dress nice..but how nice is nice? I don't need a tuxedo, do I? Oh god, what if I don't wear the right thing?" He started panicking, asking Stella question after question before she held up a firm hand.

"Spencer!" She grabbed his attention, "Calm. Down. This is Derek, anything you wear will be good enough for him, he cares about you."

The two had already entered the teen's room, heading for the closet.

"But what if he doesn't? I don't want to disappoint him after he's going through so much trouble for this date!"

She gently pushed him aside, ruffling through his hangers until she found what she was looking for: A slightly-darker pastel purple dress shirt.

"Wear this, for starters." She said, pushing the clothing into his hands.

He looked at the article with skepticism, "Are you sure?"

She nodded with affirmation, "I've seen his face when he looks at you...it's always with love, but I think he has a special affliction with you and purple."

He blushed, "And, you really do look good in it. I'd say pair it with your black pants, and _those,"_ She pointed to a nice pair on the floor, "shoes."

He felt his body relax, quickly gathering the items in his hands and thanking Stella for the help. She nodded and left the room for him to get ready.

.

.

.

Reid slipped the small gift box into his pocket before running down the stairs to wait for Derek's arrival.

True to his word, Morgan arrived at precisely 5:30. When Spencer opened the door, he was left in awe at the beauty that was his date's.

Derek was wearing a similar attire, his shirt catching in all the right places. When the lean teen looked back up to his lover's face he saw the humor residing on it.

"See something you like, Pretty Boy?" He asked playfully seductive, drawing him in close for a long kiss. "Because I do."

Spencer felt the warmth on his face, Derek's comments would forever make him melt. "You look..gorgeous." He said slowly, trying to find a word that would truly fit, but unable.

"Mhm...not as beautiful as you, Spencer." He mumbled, lost in the curls on top of his boyfriend's head.

The resided on the porch still, both just soaking in the presence of each other though they'd seen each other a mere two hours ago.

Reid smiled, "Now will you tell me?"

Derek pulled back, "No." He winked, "Sorry, it's a surprise."

Spencer rolled his eyes lovingly before opening the door and bidding a farewell and goodnight to the housekeeper just incase she left before he got back, Derek following suit.

.

.

The two pulled into a bright park, tall trees dominating the sky. Spencer watched a few birds pass by a some joggers along a small pathway.

He smiled at how calm it seemed, the lush grass swaying slightly, small flowers poking out at random.

"It's nice, don't you think?" Derek asked, watching his face after he parked off to the side.

Reid nodded mutely, turning to smile at Morgan. "I hope you're not planning on going for a run." He joked.

Derek chuckled, "No..though this would be a good spot." He shook the idea away, "I thought we could have a picnic dinner here, you know..watch the sunset and lay down watching the sky with you."

Spencer smiled, "That sounds amazing..Garcia would be jealous."

Derek laughed, "I'm sure she will be, but there's also another part, Pretty Boy."

Spencer eyed him, biting down his comment of him working too hard for Reid's sake, instead wanting to let him know that he appreciated it.

"I managed to get us into that art gallery you've been talking about, it's not supposed to be open to the public but the manager has a bit of a soft-spot for teenagers in love, and we get in at 7:45." He informed him, giddy waiting to see his reaction.

Spencer beamed, "Really? That's great! I can't believe you did all this! I know you'll love it too."

Derek smiled, "I wanted to...I've put you through a lot, Spencer. I like to make you smile, and I think we'll both like the exhibit."

Reid hugged Morgan then, heart beating rapidly with love and appreciation. "Thank you."

Derek kissed his forehead before grabbing the picnic basket and Spencer's hand and leading him further into the park.

Spencer still blushed at the contact, loving the calloused hand gripping his.

When Derek finally chose their spot, Spencer helped him spread out the blanket and food. Morgan sat him down, declaring that he was going to serve the food (Homemade chicken Alfredo, garlic knots, fruit salad, and sparking grape 'wine') to him.

Reid smiled warmly, catching the teen's eyes. "You're so incredible...I don't know what I'd do without you." And that was true, who knew where he would be if he hadn't moved here?

Morgan's face softened even more, wanting nothing more than to just grab his lover and hold him. So, he did just that. The food was forgotten for the moment, both sitting on the blanket within each other's arms. "I love you, Spencer Reid."

Reid smiled against his chest, pulling back merely inch to reply. "I love you too, Derek Morgan."

.

.

The two walked through the gallery, staring at the odd and amazing artwork that littered the walls.

Derek couldn't suppress a giggle at the very _inappropriate _painting they were 'critiquing'. Spencer was wide-eyed at the explicit scene before them, "That's..different." He couldn't help but laugh with his partner.

They'd received demeaning looks from the other art-goers surrounding them, pointing their noses in the air.

Derek rolled his eyes at their attitudes before slipping an arm around Spencer's waist and walking to the next piece.

"I thought it was funny." Reid whispered in his ear, making Morgan smile and hug him tighter.

.

Spencer pulled him down onto the bench near another art piece, smiling at him. "Can I give you your gift now?"

Derek grinned at his eagerness, "Of course, Baby Boy."

Reid's smile grew larger, and he pulled out the box he'd grown used to having in his pocket (amazingly well-hidden).

Morgan stared at it curiously, if not a bit apprehensive.

Spencer laughed nervously at his facial features, "I'm not proposing to you, don't worry."

He saw Derek's face relax slightly as he laughed, the sound vibrating through his mind.

He placed the box gently into his boyfriend's palm, closing his fingers around it.

Derek's answer wasn't necessarily intended for Spencer, but he heard it anyway. "Good..I always thought _I'd _be the one to propose to _you._

Reid gasped very softly, a questioning glance thrown to his partner- but still smiling.

Morgan shook his head bashfully in response, "Can I open it now?"

Spencer nodded happily. Derek undid the little bow that held it together, pulling the lid off in the process.

He picked up the silver ring with a grin, it had tiny little leaves engraved around the outside-as if they were flowing in a breeze. Inside the words said: "Strength, Courage, Love" A phrase they'd taken up to always remind each other of when they were in need of support.

Derek was quiet for a moment, tracing his finger along the phrase. Spencer waited both patiently and anxiously.

Morgan lifted his head, eyes watering slightly. He smiled at Reid as he slipped the ring onto his own finger, "I can't explain to you how much that means to me..I love it, thank you."

Spencer nearly sighed in relief. Derek held his hand, "I remind myself how lucky I am to be with you every day, of how I almost never got to experience this, that I could have ruined one of the best things to happen to me.."

Spencer breathed in the words, "But you didn't ruin it, Derek. If anything, I think it made us a little bit more aware of each other."

The mixed teen nodded and Spencer continued, "When I first moved here, all I wanted was to be back home...but then I met all of you and things changed."

"You know? I think I've changed..you changed me." Derek informed him as they laid against each other.

Spencer gave him a quizzical smile, "Did I?"

"Mhmm." Was the only answer he received before the muscular teen kissed him.

.

.

They'd snuck up to Spencer's room (Though, they guessed Mrs. Gualardi knew they were there) after getting back from the art gallery, Stella was still working and Mr. Reid had yet to come home.

They'd made sure the door was locked after they closed it- not wanting a repeat of Penelope's interruption.

Spencer smiled shyly at Derek as he laid on the bed next to him, Morgan enveloping him in his arms.

Derek played with his hair, running it through his fingers repeatedly. Reid grabbed his other hand, spinning the ring in a haze. He was nervous, unsure if Derek was wanting _something _to happen tonight.

"You okay, Pretty Boy?" Morgan asked, looking down at the beauty beneath him.

He smiled at the name, but returned to a slight frown. "I, um, I don't know how anniversary dates..end."

Derek's eyebrows ruffled, "What do you mean?"

"Um, were you wanting to..have sex?" He paused, burning with embarrassment. He knew Derek had had sex before (though only with girls) and wasn't sure if he'd want to now.

"God, I sound like such a child." He added, more to himself than Derek.

Morgan's eyebrows rose steadily, "Oh.." He commented as the realization hit him. "Oh, Honey, dates don't automatically end with sex..We have to both be ready for that."

Spencer was still blushing, but relaxed at the words. Derek laughed and hugged him, "Plus, I don't think it would be very romantic with Stella downstairs."

Reid laughed in relief, "Probably not."

Morgan went back to playing with his curls, staying that way until Spencer turned his face upwards and kissed him lightly.

"Thank you for the candy." He told Derek, placing a kiss on his lips.

"..For the great picnic." Two kisses.

"And for the art gallery." Three kisses more.

He'd turned by now, placing his hands gently behind Derek's neck. "And for being such an amazing person." He closed his eyes on the smiling Morgan, kissing him long and slow, allowing for Derek to slip his tongue in.

They held onto each other, every so often coming up for air- just to kiss again. _I'll never get used to this._ Spencer thought as he tried to suppress a small moan.

Derek growled throatily in response, holding him closer. The noise made his heart skip a beat, he definitely wanted to make him make that sound again.

They pulled back, both breathing heavily when Mrs. Gualardi called out to them from beyond the door. "I'm going home for the night! Your father should be home any minute, I hope you boys had a good time tonight!" Derek rested his forehead on Spencer's in exasperation at yet another interruption.

Derek recollected himself first, pulling Spencer up and fixing his hair before opening the door.

Stella stifled a grin at the slightly disheveled pair, Spencer's face burning and unable to make direct contact.

"Goodnight, Stella. I'll see you soon!" Morgan told her happily.

"See you tomorrow morning, tell everyone I say hello." Spencer replied, giving her a quick and awkward hug.

"Goodnight boys." She said again before heading down the stairs.

After the front door shut, Reid laughed miserably. "She had to have known."

Morgan grinned, throwing his arm around his shoulder. "Yeah, most likely." He pouted then, "Your dad will be home soon.."

Spencer nodded, "Yeah..I wish you could stay longer."

Derek smiled, hugging him. "Me too, Baby Boy." After pulling back he asked, "Walk me to the door?"

Reid rolled his eyes, "Of course."

After double-checking his pockets for his keys and phone, he held Spencer's hand down the stairs.

"Who would have known you'd be such a romantic?" Spencer asked, lovingly teasing him.

"Yeah, yeah...you know you love it." He responded once they'd hit the bottom step, tilting Spencer's chin upwards.

"It's hard not to." He replied, kissing Morgan once more before seeing lights flash across the front door's window.

"Thank you again for the ring, I can't wait to show it Penelope and Momma."

Reid laughed lightly at the idea of how the girls would react, "I can't wait to see that..I'm glad you like it just as much as I've loved today."

Derek rested his forehead on his boyfriend's, "Of course I do." He heard the front door open but paid no mind as he kissed him for the last time that night.

Mr. Reid stared in somewhat-surprise at his son kissing the star football player, who had just told him he loved him.

"I love you too, text me so I know you got home safe." Spencer replied, he too ignoring his father.

"I will. Goodnight, Pretty Boy." Derek responded, heading for the door.

He passed William, who was currently placing his briefcase on the coffee table. He nodded stiffly, "Mr. Reid."

Spencer's father nodded back in response, watching the now closed door before facing his son doing the same.

"When did that happen?" Mr. Reid asked, confused.

Spencer smiled, "One month, twenty-two hours, and thirteen minutes ago."


	32. Chapter 32

A/N: This (short) chapter is set the morning after Spencer and Derek's anniversary date. Hope you enjoy!

I'm going to start writing a boarding school au, hopefully it works out (keep an eye out!)

Please review!

/

Chapter 32: A Different Kind Of Love

Penelope sat atop Derek's caved-in window sill, sending off a message to Kevin. She'd only been there a few minutes, waiting for her best friend to get out of the shower (because he turned down her offer of showering together).

When he came back in ten minutes later, dressed in basketball shorts and a tee, he was smiling and slipping his own phone into his pocket and sitting down.

"Whatcha smilin' about, my God?" She asked him, drawing him back into reality as she sat on the bed across from him.

He shook his head, "Just a 'good morning' text from Spencer."

Garcia hummed, "You really love him, don't you?"

He paused, smiling down at his hands as he touched his ring. "Yeah, I really think I do."

Her eyes locked in where his were, "What is that?"

He looked up bashfully, something she'd rarely seen on his face, each time having something to do with Spencer.

She smiled softly, "Did he get you that?"

Morgan grinned at her, "Yes, for our one month anniversary."

Her eyes widened slightly, smiling fondly at him. "I didn't realize it had been that long!"

"It was yesterday." He replied, chuckling slightly, "I never thought I'd have one."

"You just had to find the right person, and I think you did." She told him sweetly.

He smiled to himself, he thought he had to.

"Are..are you two engaged?" She asked carefully.

Morgan cracked a grin, "Not yet, PG."

She almost gaped at him, instead smiling in slight confusion. "Are you planning something, Derek Morgan?"

"Not yet, I'm a senior in high school!" He told her, tracing the design on the ring. "Want to see it up close?"

She laughed, pulling his hand so she could see the details. "That's a pretty design, but all I can imagine is poor Spencer having to face the mall alone to get to the jewelry store."

Laughing heartily, he replied, "Oh, trust me...I heard _in detail_ how horrifying that trip was."

"I bet you did." She laughed, picking up her purse. "You told Spencer I'm riding with you guys today, right? I don't want him to start talking dirty to you while I'm in the back seat."

He stared at her in amusement while she continued, "Or maybe I do."

They walked out of his bedroom door, Derek now somewhat quiet.

"You alright?" Garcia asked, "I'm sorry if that was too far...you know I'm just joking."

He nodded, not wanting to talk. He knew Penelope thought of him as a player, because he always had been, but Spencer was different to him than those girls...it made him scared to go any further than where they'd explored. He thought about Carl Buford again, but pushed it away..._Th__at bastard doesn't get to decide who I love._

Penelope looked alarmed now, "Morgan?"

He raised an eyebrow at the girl, that was a rare nickname coming from her. "What?"

"You haven't talked since we got in the car." She said quietly.

_Damn,_ he thought as he looked at the road, his mind had been on autopilot.

"Sorry, just focused on driving." He told her, clicking on the turn signal.

She stared hard at him, "Since when was it that you won't you talk to me?"

He sighed, "There are certain things we both keep to ourselves, I don't know everything you have locked away in your mind." He gripped the steering wheel harder, only one person knew about Carl and that was the way he wanted to keep it.

"I just want to know if you're okay." She responded quietly, a little hurt.

He sighed again, taking her hand. "I'm sorry, baby girl..I'm okay, I promise."

She nodded, she knew the teen had some dark secrets held within himself...she hoped at least that he could confide in Spencer.

.

.

Penelope stayed in the car as Derek went to get Spencer, watching as they embraced when he opened the door.

She saw Reid give his boyfriend a look of concern, and Morgan explaining. A glance was thrown her way, not malicious in the least, before Spencer rubbed his arm and pulled him into a hug.

.

.

Spencer opened the door to Derek, smiling warmly and giving him a kiss. He grinned when he saw the ring on his finger.

"Hey Der." He greeted.

"Hey." The reply came with a contemplative look.

Reid watched him, "Okay, what's wrong?"

With a sigh, Derek started talking. "It's just a bad start to the day..me and Pen were talking and I thought of Buford, and now I can't stop.."

Understanding washed over his face and he rubbed his arm comfortingly, "Oh, I'm so sorry...I'm sure she's pestering you about it too."

They both glanced toward the car. "Yeah, I feel bad not telling her, but she's not entitled to all of my secrets." Derek said.

"You don't have to feel bad." Spencer told him and planted a kiss on his cheek, "We should go, we can talk about it when we're alone if you want."

Derek smiled and nodded, pinching his butt before running to the car.

"Derek!" Spencer yelped, chasing him. Garcia laughed as Derek threw himself into his seat.

Spencer gave him his famous kitten glower through the window before making his way to the passenger side and grinning at his boyfriend's laughter, _Derek is going to be okay._


	33. Chapter 33

A/N: William and Spencer actually talk in this chapter! Spence will probably be a bit angsty in this at first, because I think I would be too...also, a moment between Derek and William! Hope y'all are enjoying this story, I loved writing the date chapter.

Please review!

/

Chapter 33: Let Me Tell You A Story

Mr. Reid joined Spencer on the couch after work, who was currently watching some cheesy sci-fi movie about sharks in tornadoes.

Spencer glanced in his direction, "This movie has barely any scientific ground. I mean, it's _possible_ that sharks could be picked up in a tornado, but not with those wind powers..."

William nodded, "I always thought these movies were terribly inaccurate."

Reid raised his eyebrows an inch, surprised that he hadn't made a sarcastic comment. "That's why I like watching them...to see how bad they are."

William smiled slightly, "Me too."

"I didn't know." He responded awkwardly, of course he didn't know.

Mr. Reid felt just as awkward, staying silent for a minute in thought. He laughed suddenly, causing Spencer to stare at him.

"..I was just thinking about when you were a toddler, you would pick apart shows all the time..even cartoons." His father responded quietly.

Spencer looked down, "Did you think it was weird then, too?"

Mr. Reid sighed, twitching his lips. "Who wouldn't, Spencer? Why do you even care if I think you're strange?"

Reid shrugged his shoulders, thinking to himself, _Because I know I'm a big part of the reason you left...and because it's made me fear being myself._

"You don't need me to validate your life, you've done fine on your own." Mr. Reid added.

Spencer scoffed, "You don't know anything about me if you think that."

His father shook his head, replying honestly, "You're right, I don't. So, tell me."

He looked up in surprise, reading his dad's face. "What do you mean?"

William looked at him, "What have you been up to since I left?" Making it sound as though it had been on a week-long vacation.

"I don't know what to say." He replied honestly.

"You skipped two grades, why not any more?" The elder asked.

_I already told you why. _He thought before answering, "They wouldn't let me, they said it would damage my social skills."

Mr. Reid looked at him in amusement, their plan hadn't worked very well.

"I've done better here, socially, than in Vegas." Spencer admitted, "It's not about what grade I'm in..it's the people."

"That's good...I thought those guys who beat you up were the norm for you." William replied, making the effort.

Spencer still wasn't comfortable, but his therapist told him to attempt and 'bond' with his father, so that's what he was doing. "It was...but I don't know, things changed."

Mr. Reid was quiet for a moment, "Maybe it was better, for you, to come here. You had too much on your plate in Vegas."

"I think it really was.." He replied, looking towards his father and coughing uncomfortably, "So, um, what about you?"

"Well, I switched my practice to Virginia...bought this house six years ago, hired Mrs. Gualardi, that's about it."

Spencer nodded, unsure of what to say next. His father mulled over questions to ask.

"Hmm...You like science fiction, obviously..what else do you watch?"

"That's pretty much it, other than documentaries. I never had time to watch much TV or movies until now..I still haven't really, other than when I go to the movies with my friends and Derek...what about you?"

William replied contemplatively, "I prefer comedies, but action movies are good as well."

"How, uh, are you and Derek?" He asked, only slightly awkward.

Spencer burned, "Um, we're great..together almost a month and a half now, officially."

"Good, that's good...I, um, didn't expect him to be gay." His father commented.

Spencer almost had to laugh at his face when he realized what he'd said. "He's not, he's bisexual. Both genders."

William looked relieved that he hadn't gotten upset, letting out his held breath.

"Alright, what's your favorite book?" William asked, "Mine is 1984."

Spencer replied instantly, "The Canterbury Tales by Chaucer."

"Your mom loved that one." He commented.

Spencer smiled absently, "Whenever she was too sick to get out of bed..she would read to me. We read The Canterbury Tales _many_ times."

"It figures you'd love literature...you could read books at a high school level when you were five."

"I thought I wanted to be a professor, like her, at one point...but it isn't quite for me." He replied, he knew his therapist would be proud of him for sharing with his father, and he had to admit that it was okay on it's own. He still didn't like him that much, but he was glad they were actually talking.

"What do you want to do?" He asked, never had he thought of what career his son would go into.

Spencer hummed, "Truly? I'm still deciding, I'm going to get a doctorate in psychology and I'd like to venture into literature, as well as other areas."

William smiled briefly, "You are different." At Spencer's facial expression he corrected himself, "I didn't mean that rudely. But it's a little funny, and impressive, that you're planning on getting so many doctorates."

He shrugged, "It seems like a good plan to me."

William nodded, "It is."

"I've got to go get dressed, Derek is picking me up soon. Thanks for..talking."

.

.

.

Derek knocked on Spencer's front door, not going right in like Stella always told him to do because he knew Reid's father was home.

Morgan shook his head in disgust at the thought of the man, _How could you treat your son like he barely matters?_ He doubted the sending him to therapy was truly an act of love, but merely the handling of a 'situation'.

The door opened to reveal said man, dressed in casual blue jeans and a tee shirt. He nodded towards Derek, "..Spencer will be down in a minute, you can come inside."

The mixed teen nodded, not bothering to speak to him for fear of what he might say. He thought about going up to Spencer's room, but instead made his way to the couch and sat down.

William sat in the chair next to the couch, glancing at Derek and feeling the hatred that the mixed teen felt for him slapping him in the face.

Morgan looked at him blankly, not caring if he was being polite or not.

"Do you have an issue with me?" William asked in his interrogation voice.

Morgan looked at him incredulously, _He __really thinks I don't know what a piece of shit he's been?_ He spoke honestly, "Yes, I do."

The elder man looked momentarily taken aback, but supposed Spencer told him some of what had happened, but would he really tell everything?

Derek was mad now, the man should have expected he'd know. He didn't want to get kicked out of Spencer's house, though he knew he could come back even if he was banned- Mr. Reid was rarely there.

He carefully planned his words out, trying to be blunt but not overly so, "I have an issue with you because you don't treat Spencer well. You've hurt him a countless amount of times, well maybe not countless to him..I do not like you, and I do not respect you." Okay, maybe a little more blunt than he'd tried for.

William stared at the teen, both irritated and with a strange amount of respect at his confrontation. He understood where the kid was coming from, he knew that he was telling the truth. He nodded towards his son's boyfriend.

Derek's eyes didn't stray from the other alpha in the room, challenging him to speak against his words. He heard Spencer coming down the stairs, both men relaxing their postures for the sake of the skinny teen.

Spencer eyed them cautiously, looking for a sign of a fight. "Hey, everything okay in here?"

Derek smiled at him, a truthful smile- he was happy to see him. "Yeah, baby. You ready to go?"

Reid gave them one last glance before agreeing, Derek held his hand as they walked to the door. He threw a pointed look at William and closed the front door.


	34. Chapter 34

A/N: Fast forward a tiny bit more! They only have a month and a half left until graduation! (Spencer's been in Quantico for around four months now, I believe). The end is nigh...but I hope you still enjoy this chapter!

Also, I just posted the first chapter to a new Moreid teen AU. It's called "Bureau Boarding School" if you're interested!

Please Review!

/

Chapter 34: Time Flies

"I can't believe we're almost done." Emily commented to her friends as they sat in an assembly strictly for the (graduating) seniors.

"Stop reminding me." JJ replied unhappily, anxiety hitting her hard at the thought of moving on. "It's happening so fast, I never thought it would end, you know?"

Emily nodded, "It felt like we were going to be stuck here...now I'm not so sure I want to leave."

"I'm just glad that applying for schools and scholarships is over, that was insanely stressful." Penelope said angrily, she went through five of her beloved flower pens on that crap.

"I want to know if I actually received any of the scholarships, I don't see why they have to keep us in the dark about it." Aaron commented in an annoyed fashion.

"Of course you did, Hotch. You're _you ._" Will laughed.

Hotchner smiled slightly, the words easing his worry. His thoughts moved on and he frowned slightly, "I can only imagine the people that will be in my classes."

"You think they'll be more serious than you are?" Will joked.

"I'm not _that_ serious, not all the time at least." He replied, brushing the comment off.

Spencer smiled slightly, "That's true, I was consistently surprised when I first met you how many jokes you cracked, and how much you laughed. But it's not bad to be serious."

Hotch grinned pointedly at LaMontange, "Ha, see?"

"I'm more afraid to meet my roommate than my classmates." Garcia reflected, lips scrunched together, "They better be fabulous."

The group laughed, quieting down afterward to listen to the assembly for a minute. Derek broke the silence.

"It's like..I'm ecstatic for it all to happen, but once we get those diplomas and walk out of here...I don't know how I'll feel." Morgan said slowly, unsure if he was conveying his message correctly.

Spencer, too, was somewhat unhappy about graduation. Graduation meant he and Derek only had a couple months together before they had to go their separate ways.

Graduation meant starting over, again, in a new town and school...as a sixteen year old _college _student.

He knew he shouldn't worry, he and Derek would call each other and FaceTime, but life gets in the way. And he had a feeling that a couple of his relationships with his friends wouldn't be quite as strong if they weren't seeing each other every day, but he knew that was to be expected.

Morgan squeezed his hand, giving him a concerned look. _I guess I haven't spoken in a while._

He gave him a pathetic excuse for smile, pretending to focus back on what the principal was speaking about.

"Pretty Boy?" Derek sing-songed before turning serious, "What's up?"

He sighed, "Just thinking about graduation..us."

Morgan nodded his head, sighing as well. He looked off to the rest of the row from his end cap seat, "I've been doing that a lot, too."

"Statistics aren't in our favor...people separate after high school, rarely do people stay 'high school sweethearts', I don't want that to happen to us." He whispered to his boyfriend.

Derek gave him a side-hug, "It won't."

Aaron nudged Spencer, "Did you hear that?"

Reid looked at him quizzically, "Hear what?"

"You're definitely valedictorian, Gideon just announced it, congratulations." He smiled, clapping him on the back. The others clapped towards him proudly.

"Thank you." He smiled back before his mind began to worry about giving a speech, as every valedictorian is forced to do.

"Hey, hey..Reid!" Derek's voice was still quiet amongst the crowd, but he'd successfully alerted the teen. "Get out of your head, baby."

Spencer nodded, "Sorry."

"I'm very proud of you all, you don't have much time left here. Make the best of it!" Gideon informed everyone proudly before dismissing them.

The group stood after the crowd cleared out a bit, Penelope taking the lead like a mama duck.

"It's going to be horrible not seeing you guys everyday." Garcia said sadly.

"We'll keep in touch, we all have phones." Rossi replied, though he too sounded doubtful.

"All of my teachers say we'll never speak to anyone we met in high school after we're gone...I wish they would just let us pretend that that doesn't happen." Emily spoke with a hint of bitterness.

"Why don't we promise each other that we'll all come back here during summer vacations? At least for one week, and just hang out?" Will suggested, peaking the interest of each teenager as they sat in the lunch room- they didn't have to go back to class since the assembly ran long.

Spencer smiled, the rest of the group joining in. Aaron nodded thoughtfully, "If we can afford it, we should."

Derek grinned at his boyfriend, "See? We're going to be okay, we'll figure everything out one step at a time."

.

.

The gang had left the school, deciding to head to Penelope's and spend time together. They were all feeling particularly vulnerable and depressed at the thought of the future and wanted to so something fun.

Garcia suggested they all bake cookies, with eight different colors of dough (Red, blue, green, pink, tan, brown) so they could create things.

No one in the group was the least bit surprised that she had everything for a spontaneous baking party, nor Spencer to the fact that her bedroom was a rainbow of colors and weirdness.

He grinned at the skeleton mobile, hitting it lightly with his fingers and listening to it jingle.

"I really like your room." He told her as he, Derek, and David came into the kitchen.

"Thank you, my sweets. I try." She grinned proudly and handed them a bowl to carry to the table.

They'd all sat down, pieces of cookie sheets lining the table beneath them as the pulled bits off of each dough ball.

There were also icing pouches, sprinkles, edible markers, and cookie cutters scattered around..though most of those would have to wait.

The first batch was supposed to be creating a cookie-person based off another person in the room. Derek and Spencer made each other, JJ and Will following suit on the couple idea, Garcia and Prentiss, and David and Aaron.

They'd turned out laughable, everyone cracking up at the (quite honestly) terrifying faces of their little cookie people.

"I think we should eat them just to put them out of their misery." Rossi commented, half serious. He waited for no one, biting off the head of his replica.

The rest joined him, some making noises of approval at the taste.

"Damn, baby girl, your recipe just gets better and better." Derek complimented, happily polishing off his sweet treat.

They all laughed, smiling towards each other and enjoying their private party. The conversation never going back to graduation, just living in the moment.

Spencer smiled to himself, _Maybe we will be okay._


	35. Chapter 35

A/N: This is the end..thank you all for sticking with the story and reading every update! I appreciate it more than you could believe. I cannot wait to write more for all of you...I'll miss writing this, and reading your reviews for this story. Thank you again (Insert heart, because every time I try to make one, Fanfiction removes it).

This is making me really sad...

If I do the Derek POV, there might be scenes that weren't in this story (like a food fight).

Also, I know some of you won't be satisfied with the ending, but I wanted the ending to be kind of like FRIENDS...I wanted it to show that even though we're not reading the story anymore, their lives are still going on. (And it's open to update on their lives whenever I feel like it).

I'm posting Bureau Boarding School chapter 2 directly after this, hope to see y'all there!

Please review!

/

Chapter 35: The Pieces Have Come Together

Today was the day. The day that Spencer would no doubt remember forever, the day that he and his friends were going to say goodbye to the place where they all met, the day that would ultimately change things for each one of them.

Spencer sat in his bedroom after getting changed into his dressy outfit, they were to put on their gowns once they'd arrived at the school.

Stella was going to take him to the school, she was also going to stay and watch the service. William said he'd try to get out of work in time, but they both knew how cases (and their relationship) could be.

Derek would have picked him up, but he was arriving with his family. The teens decided to meet up before and after the ceremony, the after being the graduation party the school was hosting.

Spencer was nervous, _beyond nervous,_ actually. He'd written the speech and of course had it memorized, but he was never very good with public speaking or putting his thoughts into words.

A soft knock sounded through the room, Stella poking her head in. "You ready to go?"

He took a deep breath before nodding and following her out.

.

.

.

"Hey Boy Genius! You ready for your big moment?" Penelope asked, hoping he wouldn't become recluse at the thought of speaking.

"Hardly.." He replied, accepting her hug. "You look nice."

She grinned, "Thank you! You look good too, and you'll do fine up there."

He nodded, "Where is everyone else?"

"In the gym, which apparently we're being sent to to change." Her reply came with a disgusted look, they were supposed to change in the lunch room, not a smelly gymnasium.

They walked side by side, arriving and quickly finding their friends.

"There you are!" Derek greeted him with a kiss, "Momma took my phone, so I couldn't text you."

He laughed, Fran would do that. Absolutely no distractions during the ceremony.

Rossi walked up to him, "We'll be closer together than anyone else, so you better not lose me!"

He smiled, "I won't. How are you guys feeling right now?"

The answers ranged from ecstatic to anxious, some both.

"I just hope I don't trip on my walk up there.." Will commented, knowing how clumsy he tended to be. JJ laughed, patting his arm reassuringly.

"Alright everyone, listen up!" Mrs. Blake, the assistant principal, called out loudly, "No funny business, we're checking for horns and beach balls! Line up over here and then we'll separate you into your sections."

They collectively sighed, a pat down? What a way to start graduation.

"I told you this place is like prison." Emily huffed laughingly as she followed the rest of the group.

.

.

.

He could see Derek and David far off to the sides of him, both looking rather bored as they waited for the families to gather in the stands.

The football field was made into their once a year ceremony grounds, the only place to hold four hundred plus chairs comfortably.

The event was to begin with Gideon greeting everyone, making a speech, a slide show of various things that have happened at the school (including a voted on polling of the most likely to...kids). Next would be the class song, followed by Spencer's speech, and of course, the walk.

_Oh god..._ He groaned inwardly, _Nobody is going to want to hear me talk..._

He also thought wearily about the fact that he had the chance of winning 'Most likely to...' twice. One was for the 'Smartest Kid In School', the other was 'Cutest Couple'. If you were a winner, you were supposed to stand and let everyone clap for you. _Great. _He thought, _That would be four times in one night._

He looked up again, Gideon walking on the makeshift stage and giving everyone the signal to calm themselves, including the parents.

"Hello, everyone. Teachers, staff, families, and students...you are the reasons we are all here today. Each one of you has played a vital part in the accomplishment you are celebrating tonight." He started, gesturing with his hands randomly.

"I want to say how proud I am of each of you seniors, you've earned your right to be sitting here, waiting to come up and receive the piece of paper that will open plenty of doors for you in life. I won't talk too long, the AV club has prepared a video, but first we need to announce the winners of the Senior Class Poll!" He smiled grandly at the young adults, still alert and happy he wouldn't be talking much longer.

Another staff member made their way to the mic, the big screen behind her lighting up to reveal the title page of the poll.

She smiled, "Most likely to become a teacher..." She clicked a button and a girl's picture came up on the screen. "Addison Devlont!"

She continued down a long list of 'awards', everyone cheering for their fellow classmates. Eventually she got to 'Smartest Kid In Class.'

"Spencer Reid!" He stood shakily, the person beside him giving him a clap on the back as he did so. He could swear he heard Garcia screaming far above the rest of the class.

He sat seconds later, waiting for her to announce the cutest couple. On some part, he didn't want to win- purely because he was jittery...but then there was the piece of him that really wanted Derek to win (He'd won MVP) again.

Aaron had received 'Most Likely To Become President' and Penelope won 'Friendliest Girl'.

"Next one up is the 'Cutest Couple', a strange category to say the least, but none the less..." She started, pausing to read the names on her card. "Derek Morgan, and Spencer Reid!" Their faces, smiling lovingly at one another, showed up on the screen...a photo Penelope contributed, no doubt.

He closed his eyes for a minute before standing once more, eyes then locking with his boyfriend's. Derek smiled warmly at him, blowing him a kiss. He turned red as the people around them hooted and hollered, ignoring the few lone 'boos'.

.

.

.

"And now we ask that our class valedictorian, Spencer Reid, please come to the front and share your wisdom for us all." Gideon laughed, gesturing for him to hurry up onto the stage.

Begrudgingly, he rose. He fumbled his way passed his seat partners, begging himself not to fall or mess up.

Spencer shook the principal's hand, shaking slightly.

"It'll be fine. I've seen how much you've grown since you moved here, you can do it." Gideon informed him encouragingly.

He nodded, taking what seemed to be the hundredth deep breath that day and took his place behind the podium.

He stared out into the hundreds of faces, all waiting to just get the show on the road. He searched for Morgan's face, his friends faces, but couldn't see them directly. But he knew, he knew they were wishing him luck, he knew they couldn't wait to hear him speak.

"60% of teens feel that the graduation and commencement speeches are "worth listening to"; however, that percentage drops to 43% of students who actually remember something from the graduation speech, implying more than half of the commencement speakers are forgettable." He informed them and a few chuckles were heard, "I hope I'm not a part of those statistics." He joked anxiously.

"I..I moved here halfway through the year, expecting...well, I actually don't know what I was expecting." He started again, his voice sounding just _too_ loud to him. "But what I received, what I experienced, was something I never thought I would have the chance to do."

"On my first day, I was a scared little kid...I'm still that person, in a way..but I met people, friends, who I now consider a family. I met a guy that I'll proudly say I love, regardless of 'high school sweetheart' statistics.. I met teachers and staff who have encouraged me, much like I assume they've encouraged you...and the teachers who made me fear for my life.." His voice was a little more stable now, not following what he'd written down.

"On my second day, I encountered my first real bullies at this school, I had had many at my last one. I thought that that was how the rest of my year would go, getting beaten up and picked on..but it didn't." He admitted, not sure if any of them would even care about what he was saying.

"This school, while some refer to it as a prison.." He said, thinking of Emily. "Has been a place that all of us, for whatever reason, will miss. There are memories here, both good and bad, that will shape us into who we are in the future."

The crowd laughed at the 'prison' comment, and he smiled a bit. "Like the day that the huge food fight broke out during lunch.." He laughed along, "I don't think I'd ever heard a room go so silent as that day when Principal Gideon walked into the cafeteria."

"And I never, in my life, thought that he would join in!" Gideon smiled funnily at his story, he knew the students hadn't expected that.

"What I'm trying to say is..you can say that high school was the worst experience of your life, and I held that opinion for more than three years..but there are amazing memories, don't forget those." He told them, the crowd nearly silent. The sentiment didn't only apply to school.

He didn't know what else to say, "Thank you." He nodded and they clapped for him as he walked back to his seat, getting a few high fives along the way.

.

.

"Spencer! Congratulations!" Stella told him excitedly as she pulled him in for a hug, the ceremony had just ended and the parents were crowding the field.

He grinned, "Thank you." He looked passed her to see his father smiling at him, feeling rather awkward.

"Good speech, Spencer..congratulations." His father told him, patting him on the back.

He nodded, pushing his hair behind his ear. "Thanks, I was worried about it."

"You did just fine! Let me take pictures!" She left him no chance to argue, pulling out a camera.

He smiled accordingly to her demands, he and his father being pushed together for various ones. He and Stella took photos together, William behind the camera. Eventually they found his friends and took group photos, parents in some.

"You kids have fun tonight." Fran looked at each of them, winking. "But not too much fun."

They all laughed, wishing goodbyes to their families and retreating back to the school. Anyone who was staying for the graduation party had to be there before eleven.

"You guys, we're done!" JJ jumped for joy, stopping to retrieve her fallen cap.

"This school better throw a kick ass party, man!" Derek said, "There's supposed to be inflatable slides."

"Is that your idea of a 'kick ass party'?" David questioned in amusement.

He shrugged, "It can be."

A few other students passed them, some already out of their gowns.

"I've never been on one." Reid commented.

"Of course you haven't." David joked.

Emily spoke as well, sadly. "We need more time..so we can force you to do all the things you missed during your childhood."

They reached the school doors, walking inside to see everyone gathering around and eating the various snacks set up.

"We still have time.." Penelope said, more as a reassurance to herself.

"We promised to meet up every summer. We can plan things for then." Aaron spoke confidently, Hayley came up then.

"Hey honey!" She said sweetly, kissing his cheek. She faced the others- making them smile too. "Hey guys! That was an awesome speech Spencer, and very truthful."

He blushed, she was always so nice. "Thank you!"

"Do you guys mind if I steal Aaron for an hour?" She questioned, knowing how tight-knit the group was.

"I think I'm allowed to answer that one on my own." Hotch laughed.

She rolled her eyes with a smile on her face, "No hon..."

Emily smiled, "Go ahead and take him, as long as he doesn't leave before they lock up shop."

The girl nodded, taking hold of Aaron's hand and pulling him away. Hotch gave a small wave.

"What should we do first?" Derek asked, absently stroking Spencer's hand.

"Let's go to the dance floor!" Penelope decided, forcing her friends with her.

.

.

.

Spencer was _tired,_ it was four AM and while the party had generally died down, with people randomly sleeping in the hallways, he and his friends were still roaming around the school.

"We're not supposed to be up here.." Jayje said nervously, they were on the third floor of the school even though they were told to stick to the first floor.

"Relax JJ, they aren't even checking up here- they think all of the stairways are locked." David reassured her.

Emily looked out one of the windows, the only source of light in the dim hall. The others (including Aaron) joined her.

"One more hour and we're out of here for good." Will commented, breaking the silence. A few of them nodded.

"We really should get back down there.." Reid told them, tugging Morgan's arm lightly.

The mood was solemn as they turned away from glass, all slightly huddled together.

Penelope started crying, and David sighed. "Oh god, please don't start this...it's high school, we're not dying."

Emily snorted, but looked unsettled as well. They all did. "Yeah, it's not the end of the world..you should be happy we're leaving this hell-hole." Prentiss said without much conviction in her voice.

They opened the door to go down stairs, only to find principal Gideon on the other side.

They all went wide-eyed, Aaron even failing at trying hard to contain his surprise.

Hotchner coughed, "Sir, we..we uh.." He couldn't come up with a valid excuse, quieting and waiting to be yelled at.

The principal stared at them with disapproval, but didn't chastise them, was there perhaps a hint of a smile? "You all should get downstairs, the raffle is about to begin."

They nodded, silently and quickly following him.

.

.

.

The sun rose at a steady pace as the teenagers stepped out of the school for the last time, hesitantly walking the pathway to Aaron and Emily's cars.

"So, who's going with who?" Hotch asked the group.

"Derek, Spencer, and Pen with me..Will and JJ live closer to you." Prentiss replied, smiling at him as she leaned against her car.

He nodded, unlocking his and allowing his passengers to get in.

Spencer paused, staring at them all. Everyone was tired, and sad..and _happy._

Derek gave him a side hug and glanced towards the teens, all still standing around the cars, "We should all meet up at Christy's tomorrow morning."

Slowly a shared grin spread throughout the group, "Sounds like a plan." LaMontange agreed, ducking into the backseat.

Spencer smiled too, never wanting to forget that moment before climbing into the car. "See you guys later."


End file.
